THE  LIBRARY 

OF 
THE  UNIVERSITY 

OF  CALIFORNIA 
LOS  ANGELES 


^4 
<=4^ 

/<?<; 


"BRUCE,  SIT  DOWN!"    Page  36. 


BIG     BRUCE 


AND    LITTLE    MOSS. 


BY    F.    W. 


AUTHOR  OF  "JANET  THORNE,  "THE  LITTLE  NEIGHBOR,"  ETC. 


PUBLISHED     BY 

WARREN,    BROUGHTON,     AND     WYMAN, 
13    BIBLE    HOUSE,    NEW    YORK. 
.     53    WASHINGTON    ST.,    BOSTON. 


PREFACE. 


THIS  is  a  story  about  school-boys,  and 
for  school-boys,  and  I  had  almost  said, 
"  written  by  a  school-boy,"  which  would 
not  be  quite  true,  though  it  is  written 
by  one  who  has  many  school-boy  friends, 
and  would  be  very  sorry  to  lose  them. 
I  say  especially  written  for  school-boys, 
because  there  are  a  great  many  very 
nice  tales  written  which  are  called  "  boys' 
tales,"  because  they  are  about  boys,  but 
which  are  not  really  written  so  much  to 
(3) 

622780 


4  PKEFACE. 

amuse  and  interest  the  boys  themselves, 
as  to  amuse  or  interest  their  friends  or 
teachers. 

But  this  little  story  of  mine  is  really 
to  be  a  "  boy's  story ;  "  and  as  I  write  it, 
I  try  to  fancy  myself  sitting  among  my 
boys,  with  Johnny  on  one  side  and  Harry 
on  the  other  —  both  out  of  mischief  for 
once  —  and  Enoch's  great  eyes  staring 
hard  at  ine,  and  little  Simeon  beginning 
to  fidget  because  I  am  so  long  before  I 
begin  my  story. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER    I. 

PACK. 

MR.  SILVER 7 


CHAPTER    II. 
MR.  Moss 14 

CHAPTER    III. 
TOM  AND  BESSY ". 24 

CHAPTER    IV. 
SCHOOL    BEGINS 31 

CHAPTER    V. 
TOM'S  PICTURE , 40 

CHAPTER    VI. 
THE   CONSPIRACY 62 


(5) 


6  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER    VII. 
THK  MASTER'S  PROPOSAL 60 

CHAPTER    VIII. 
TOM'S  GUT 69 

CHAPTER    IX. 
THE  DISASTER 79 

CHAPTER    X. 
THK   MASTER'S  STORY 90 


II. 
WHERE  WE  FOUND  THE  LACE 109 

III. 
THE  LOST  LETTER 116 

IV. 
A  VERT  KNOWING  BIRD 182 


BIG  BRUCE  AND  LITTLE  MOSS. 


CHAPTER    I. 

MR.   SILVER. 


THINK  when  you  have  heard  the 
cause  of  it,  you  will  all  agiee  with 
Bob  Clarke's  exclamation,  "  Well !  I  do 
call  it  a  regular  shame  !  " 

Bob  was  one  of  about  a  dozen  boys  who 
formed  the  highest  class  in  Burnside  school, 
and  when  the  news  came  that  the  master 
was  going  away  and  a  new  one  coming, 
there  was  such  a  fuss  in  the  school  that  you 
would  have  thought  something  very  dread- 
ful had  happened.  And  very  dreadful  the 

(7  ) 


V 

8 


boys  thought  it,  for  —  as  they  all  agreed  — • 
Mr.  Silver  was  "  the  jolliest  fellow  going," 
in  fact,  "a  regular  brick."  He  had  only 
been  at  Burnside  a  year,  but  that  year  was 
one  which  by  the  first  class,  at  least,  would 
always  be  remembered  as  a  very  pleasant 
one.  "  He  was  such  a  good-tempered  chap  ! 
never  bullied  and  lectured  as  old  Watson 
used  to  do  !  "  Why,  you  had  only  to  look 
at  his  broad,  good-natured  face,  and  hear 
his  loud  ringing  laugh  when  any  joke  was 
about  in  the  school,  to  know  that.  School 
hours  always  seemed  short  with  him,  and, 
indeed,  they  often  were  really  shortened 
under  some  prete'xt  or  other.  Sometimes  it 
was  because  the  days  were  drawing  in,  and 
the  afternoons  were  too  dark  for  work,  and 
a  foot  race  over  the  common,  or  a  slide  on 


MR.    SILVER.  9 

the  round  pond  would  do  them  all  good. 
And  wasn't  it  fun  to  see  the  master  flying 
across  the  ice,  a  great  boy  himself !  —  and 
after  him  a  long  tail  of  boys,  the  big  ones 
straight  and  swift,  the  little  ones  trying  hard 
to  keep  up,  puffing  and  blowing,  with  arms 
going  like  so  many  small  windmills,  till 
thump !  one  would  go  down  with  half  a 
dozen  on  the  top  of  him. 

But  better  still  were  the  long  summer 
evenings,  when  football  and  cricket  only 
gave  place  occasionally  to  a  scramble  up 
Cranly  Hill  to  fly  Mr.  Silver's  big  kite. 
Such  a  beauty,  over  six  feet  high,  with  a 
tail  that  stretched  half  across  the  play- 
ground !  As  to  cricket,  why,  when  Mr. 
Silver  came  there  was  hardly  a  boy  in  the 
school  that  knew  how  to  handle  a  bat,  and 


10         BIG  BRUCE   AND   LITTLE  MOSS. 

before  the  summer  was  half  over,  they  had 
beaten  the  Lowmore  fellows,  and  next  year 
they  were  to  play  Brickington  school,  "  and 
wouldn't  it  be  fine  to  lick  them!"  Mr.  Sil- 
ver spoke  very  hopefully  on  the  subject,  for 
he  was  an  excellent  player  himself,  and 
many  of  the  boys  soon  showed  considerable 
skill.  Tom  Bruce's  strong  arm  placed  him 
first  among  the  bats  ;  Joe  Willis's  straight 
eye  made  his  bowling  formidable ;  whilst 
Clarke's  long  legs  were  the  very  thing  for 
a  longstop,  and  many  others  were  consider- 
ed highly  promising. 

Indeed,  all  the  summer  the  boys  thought 
of  little  else  except  cricket,  and  Mr.  Fearon, 
the  rector,  used  to  say  that  it  made  them 
forget  better  things.  Stumps  and  bails 
filled  their  heads  instead  of  figures ;  a  "  good 


MB.   SILVER.  11 

catch"  was  thought  more  of  than  a  "  good 
place,"  and  the  number  of  runs  was  of  much 
more  importance  than  the  number  of  marks. 
At  last,  when  one  of  the  boys  in  Mrs. 
Fearon's  Sunday  school  class  fell  asleep  in 
a  story  she  was  reading  to  them,  and  woke 
up  at  the  end,  exclaiming,  "  Well  run,  in- 
deed !  Go  it  again,  old  chap  !  "  the  minis- 
ter began  to  look  very  grave ;  and,  when 
on  the  next  Sunday,  some  of  the  younger 
ones  were  caught  passing  away  the  half 
hour  before  service  in  the  church-yard  at 
their  favorite  pastime,  one  of  the  tombstones 
being  used  as  the  wicket,  he  spoke  to  them 
very  seriously,  and  said  that,  unless  the 
thing  could  be  kept  in  proper  bounds,  he 
must  have  it  put  a  stop  to  altogether.  Nev- 


12          BIG  BEUCE   AND   LITTLE   MOSS. 

ertheless,  their  interest  in  it  remained  una- 
bated till  the  cold  weather  set  in,  and  they 
could  only  put  away  their  beloved  bats  and 
balls,  and  long  for  the  next  summer. 

After  Easter,  Mr.  Silver  promised  they 
should  begin  again ;  but  when  school  open- 
ed after  the  holidays,  no  Mr.  Silver  was 
there,  and  Mr.  Fearon  told  them  the  terri- 
ble news  that  he  would  not  return  at  all, 
but  that  a  fresh  master  was  coming  in  a 
fortnight,  during  which  interval  he  himself 
should  act  as  their  teacher ;  and,  as  I  said 
at  first,  Bob  Clarke  declared,  when  Mr.  Fea- 
ron was  safely  out  of  hearing,  that  it  was 
"  a  regular  shame  !  " 

At  first  they  could  scarcely  believe  it; 
but  as  the  days  went  on,  and  no  Mr.  Silver 


MB.   SILVER.  13 

appeared,  they  were  forced  to  do  so,  and  to 
make  up  their  minds  for  a  new  master. 

Who  the  new  master  was  remains  to  be 
seen  in  the  next  chapter. 


CHAPTER    II. 

ME.   MOSS. 

O  higher  than  I  am,  and  a  regular 

humpback  I " 
"  Oh,  come  now,  get  out,  Clarke  ;  none 
of  your  humbug  !  " 

"  But  I  tell  you  it's  true.  I  saw  him  with 
my  own  eyes  coming  out  of  the  parsonage 
yesterday  evening.  And  young  Rixon  says 
that  the  cook  told  him  it  was  the  new  mas- 
ter, and  I  said,  '  I  won't  believe  it,'  and  he 
says,  '  Well,  you  just  ask  them  indoors,  and 
they'll  tell  you  the  same  as  I  do.'  And," 
repeated  Clarke,  bringing  out  the  words 
(14  ) 


MK.   MOSS.  15 

with  solemn  distinctness,  "  he's  —  a  —  reg- 
ular —  little  —  humpyback !  " 

There  was  silence  in  the  school  after  this 
awful  announcement  had  been  made,  whilst 
the  boys  gathered  round  Clarke  eager  to 
hear  more. 

Then  little  Mat  Hill  said  still  more  sol- 
emnly, "  And  I  saw  him,  too  ;  and  it's  quite 
right  what  Clarke  says." 

"  And  where  did  you  see  him  ?  "  asked 
several. 

"Why,  I  was  up  at  the  forge  helping 
Master  Barnet  to  shut  up  last  evening,  and 
I  saw  him  and  Mr.  Fearon  go  by  together, 
and  they  stopped  just  there  by  the  corner, 
and  I  heard  him  say  —  " 

"  Well,  make  haste ;  what  did  you  hear  ?  " 

"  I  heard  him  say  —  " 


16          BIG  BEUCE   AND  LITTLE  MOSS. 

"Well!  what?" 

"  I  heard  him  say,  '  Good  evening  to  you, 
sir.' " 

This  was  given  out  so  gravely,  that  it 
caused  a  shout  of  laughter,  and  poor  Hill 
retired  abashed,  while  the  talk  became  more 
livety. 

"Well,"  began  Willis,  "I  have  heard 
tell  of  another  school  that  had  a  master  with 
a  wooden  leg  too  —  " 

"  I  didn't  say  a  wooden  leg,"  interrupted 
Clarke. 

"  Never  mind,  it's  all  the  same  thing.  It 
was  a  school  that  one  of  my  uncles  went  to, 
leastways  his  father  did,  and  when  one  of 
the  chaps  was  "cheeky,  or  made  a  row  in 
school,  this  master,  he  ups  with  his  wooden 
leg  and  catches  him  such  a  crack  on  the  shins 


MR.  MOSS.  17 

as  lie  did  not  forget  it  in  a  huriy ;  so  I  think 
we'd  best  look  out !  " 

"  I'd  like  to  see  him  trying  that  dodge  on 
us,"  laughed  Bruce  ;  "  I'll  warrant  he'd  not 
try  it  011  a  second  time,  if  I  was  in  school !  " 

"  Well,"  ventured  Hill  again  with  some 
hesitation,  "  the  man  that  I  saw  hadn't  a 
wooden  leg  any  more  than  Mr.  Silver  had, 
and  I  think  he  must  be  a  pretty  good  sort 
by  what  I  heard  Mr.  Fearon  say  to  Master 
Barnet  of  him." 

"  Good  evening,  sir,  I  suppose,"  suggest- 
ed Clarke. 

"  No,  it  wasn't  that ;  but  Mr.  Fearon  said 
he'd  known  Mr.  Moss  —  " 

"Mr.  What?" 

"Moss,  Mr.  Moss,  I  think  that's  the 
name." 


18          BIG  BRUCE   AND   LITTLE  MOSS. 

This  was  a  really  interesting  piece  of 
news,  and  "  Moss  —  Mr.  Moss,"  was  re- 
peated in  various  tones. 

"  Moss  !  well,  that  sounds  precious  soft," 
said  Clarke,  who  always  had  a  joke  ready. 

"  And  jolly  green,"  added  Willis.* 

"  And  none  the  worse  for  a  ducking  !  " 
exclaimed  Bruce  ;  "  and  I'll  tell  you  what 
it  is  !  "  he  went  on,  rising  and  striking  his 
fist  on  the  desk  ;  "  I  say,  boys,  I  won't  be 
put  upon  by  any  one,  least  of  all  by  a  crook- 
ed old  crab-tree  like  that." 

"  Not  so  very  old  ! "  murmured  Hill. 

"  Oh,  very  well !  you  can  hobble  about 
after  him  if  you  choose,  Mat  Hill ;  you're  a 
little  old  man  yourself  already.  But  as  for 
me,  /say  '  Silver  forever ! '  and  bad  luck  to 


ME.   MOSS.  19 

those  who  turned  him  out,  and  to  him  that 
comes  sneaking  into  his  place  !  " 

Now  Bruce,  or  "  Big  Bruce"  as  he  was 
called,  was  a  person  of  some  importance  in 
Burnside  school,  as  you  will  presently  dis- 
cover. He  was  the  oldest,  the  biggest,  the 
strongest,  the  cleverest,  the  best  at  cricket, 
and,  above  all,  Mr.  Silver's  prime  favorite. 
He  was  nearly  fourteen,  and  tall  and  strong 
of  his  age,  and  if  you  had  seen  him  to-day 
as  he  stood  with  his  hand  upraised,  his 
handsome  young  face  flushed  with  excite- 
ment, his  blue  eyes  sparkling,  and  his 
yellow  curl's  tossed  back  like  the  mane  of 
some  tawny  young  lion,  I  think  you  would 
have  thought  with  his  school-fellows,  that 
Big  Bruce  was  a  very  fine  fellow. 

"  I  say,  Silver  forever  !     Three  cheers  for 


20          BIG  BKTJCE   AND   LITTLE  MOSS. 

Silver  !  "  he  repeated,  and  the  three  cheers 
were  being  given  lustily,  when  a  voice  at 
the  door  made  all  start. 

"  What  does  all  this  noise  mean,  boys  ?  " 
It  was  Mr.  Fearon,  and  his  face  was  very 
grave  as  he  took  his  place  at  the  end  of  the 
room.  "  You  did  not  know,  perhaps,  that  I 
overheard  some  of  what  you  have  been  say- 
ing," he  said,  almost  sternly ;  "  and  I  am 
glad  of  it,  as  I  now  know  what  you  think 
about  your  new  master,  and  can,  perhaps, 
set  right  a  few  of  your  notions  which  are 
wrong.  It  is  quite  true  that  it  pleased  God 
some  years  ago  to  visit  Mr.  Moss  with  a  sad 
affliction,  an  accident  just  such  as  might 
happen  to  one  of  yourselves  any  day,  and  it 
has  left  its  marks  on  him  very  sadly.  You 


ME.   MOSS.  21 

will  indeed,  find  him  very,  different  from 
your  late  master.  But  you  know  that  one 
person  may  be  different  and  yet  no  worse, 
than  another,  and  I  believe,  if  you  will  only 
have  patience,  you  will  find  out  that  this 
change  is  one  for  the  better.  You  will  un- 
derstand it  more  entirely  when  you  are  old 
enough  to  see  that  there  are  other  things 

o  o 

worth  learning,  besides  cricket  and  football. 
Meanwhile,  I  earnestly  hope  you  will  re- 
ceive your  new  master  in  a  good  spirit.  I 
don't  ask  you  to  forget  Mr.  Silver ;  he  was 
very  kind  to  you  in  many  ways,  and  it  is 
right  that  you  should  remember  him  with 
affection.  But  still  I  say,  have  patience, 
and  don't  run  away  with  the  notion  that 
you  have  been  ill-used,  for  the  change  is 


22          BIG  BRTJCE   AND   LITTLE  MOSS. 

made  for  your  own  sakes,  as  you  will  some 
day  see." 

Mr.  Fearon's  words  were  received  in  si- 
lence ;  some  of  the  boys  listened  respect- 
fully and  attentively,  others  looked  uncom- 
fortable. Bruce  stuck  his  hands  in  his 
pockets,  and  looked  out  of  the  window  as  if 
the  minister's  words  did  not  concern  him  at 
all. 

"When  school  was  over,  Mr.  Fearon  said, 
"  To-day  is  Friday,  and  when  you  next 
meet  on  Monday,  Mr.  Moss  will  be  here. 
I  hope  you  will  all  remember  and  attend  to 
what  I  told  you  this  morning." 

The  boys  dispersed  rather  silently,  loi- 
tering in  the  little  knots  to  talk  it  over  as 
they  went  home,  all  feeling  as  if  something 


MR.   MOSS.  23 

I 

very  exciting  and  important  were  going  to 
happen. 

We,  too,  will  for  the  present  leave  school 
behind,  and  follow  Tom  Bruce  to  his  home. 


CHAPTER    III. 

TOM  AND   BESSY. 

H,  Tom,  I'm  so  glad  you're  come  ? 
I've  been  looking  out  for  you  ever 
so  long  ;  what  has  made  you  so  late,  to-day ! 
It's  not  cricket-day,  is  it?  " 

"  No,  nor  won't  be  cricket-day  any  more, 
so  far  as  I  can  see,  Bessy ! "  and  Tom 
Bruce  threw  himself  down  in  the  window- 
seat  beside  his  little  sister. 

Bessy  Bruce  had  been  a  sufferer  from  her 

birth,  and  it  was  a  sad  sight  to  see  her  now 

as   she   lay  propped  up  with  pilld*ws,  her 

small  pale  face  all  lined  with  sickness,  and 

(24) 


TOM  AND   BESSY.  25 

her  great  blue  eyes  full  of  that  W3ary, 
wistful  look  that  is  bought  by  pain  and 
sleepless  nights  and  comfortless  days.  Yet 
there  was  something  very  winning  in  the 
child's  face,  for  though  only  ten  years  old, 
Bessy, had  already  learned  the  great  lesson 
of  patience,  and  those  who  were  with  her 
seldom  saw  a  shade  of  discontent  on~  the 
sweet  face,  or  heard  a  fretful  tone  in  the 
gentle  v^ice. 

It  was  strange,  people  said,  that  the 
Braces  should  have  two  such  children  ;  the 
one  so  strong  and  handsome,  so  full  of  life 
and  spirit ;  the  other  so  frail  and  weak  and 
small.  And  yet  it  would  have  been  hard  to 

say  which  the  parents  loved  most,  for  we  all 

\ 
know  that  the  small  weak  things  are  always 

most  tenderly  cared  for.     Which   of  you, 


26          BEG  BRUCE  AND   LITTLE   MOSS. 

bo}rs,  is  there  that  would  not  stick  up  for 
the  little  chaps,  who  can't  fight  for  them- 
selves ?  And  isn't  that  boy  a  big  coward 
who  will  hurt  the  young  birds  in  their  nest, 
or  set  a  dog  on  the  larnbs,  or  strike  a  girl  ? 
And  so  .with  Big  Bruce,  —  the  little  white- 
faced  sister  was  nearer  his  heart  than  any- 
thing else  in  the  world.  Even  in  the  midst 
of  his  play,  whether  it  were  a  slide  on  the 
ice  or  a  game  of  cricket,  he  would  often 
leave  it  in  the  middle,  because  Bess  was 
dull  at  home  without  him.  It  was  a  pretty 
sight  to  see  him  when  she  was  ill  or  fever- 
ish, sitting  hour  after  hour  at  her  side, 
hushing  his  merry  voice  to  gentleness,  still- 
ing his  restless  hands  to  smooth  her  pillow 
or  shade  the  light  from  her  aching  eyes. 
And,  as  is  usually  the  case,  he  got  as 


TOM   AND   BESSY.  27 

much  as  lie  gave  or  more,  for  Bessy  was 
the  keenest  sympathizer  in  all  his  joys  and 
troubles.  Any  new  game,  any  piece  of  fun, 
could  not  be  thoroughly  enjoyed  till  the 
child's  pale  face  had  glowed  and  her  eyes 
brightened  with  interest  in  it.  And  school 
troubles  were  lighter,  scrapes  more  easily 
got  out  of,  wrongs  easier  to  forgive,  when  all 
had  been  talked  over  with  Bess.  Often, 
indeed,  she  had  little  to  say,  but  "  Oh,  Tom, 
how  nice  !  How  I'd  like  to  be  there  !  "  or, 
"  Tom,  dear,  I'm  so  sorry  !  but  don't  vex 
about  it ;  it'll  all  come  right  soon  !  "  But 
still  there  was  something  in  her  loving,  gen- 
tle sympathy  that  nothing  else  quite  came  up . 
to.  So  to-day  the  fresh  vexation  about  the 
new  master  was  poured  out  into  the  ever 
ready  ear,  as  he  sat  with  his  head  buried 


28          BIG  BRUCE   AND   LITTLE   MOSS. 

down  by  the  pillow  and  Bessy's  thin  fingers 
wandering  softly  among  the  thick,  bright 
curls  of  his  hair. 

"  Oh,  Bess  !  isn't  it  too  bad  ?  I  do  wish 
I  wasn't  in  the  school  at  all  now  !  I  wish 
father  would  let  me  leave  now  !  I  wish 
I'd  never  asked  him  to  let  me  stay  another 
year!  I  wish  —  " 

"  I  wish  Mr.  Silver  hadn't  left,  too,"  said 
Bessy  thoughtfully ;  "  but  it  can't  be  helped 
now,  Tom  dear." 

"  Ah,  but  it  might  have  been  helped.  I 
believe  it  was  all  spite.  I  believe  Mr. 
Fearon —  " 

"  Oh  mind,  Tom  !  Don't  say  any  thing 
about  Mr.  Fearon,  he's  so  good  and  kind, 
and  I'm  sure  it  wasn't  his  fault  Mr.  Silver 
left." 


TOM  AND   BESSY.  29 

"  Well,  it  was  somebody's  fault,  and  who- 
ever it  was  will  be  sorry  for  it  soon,  for  1 
never  will  be  under  the  thumb  of  a  hump- 
backed dwarf,  and  I'm  pretty  near  sure 
there's  not  a  chap  in  the  school  but  thinks 
as  I  do,  unless  it's  that  little  muff,  Mat  Hill, 
and  he'll  soon  find  which  way  his  bread  is 
buttered,  I  fancy  !  " 

Bessy  was  silent,  for  indeed  she  scarcely 
knew  what  to  say.  She  knew  how  kind 
Mr.  Silver  had  been,  and  what  a  favorite  he 
was  in  the  school,  and  what  an  especial 
loss  he  had  been  to  Tom ;  and  besides  that, 
she  had  a  secret  feeling  that  a  little  hump- 
backed cripple  was  scarcely  the  peison  to 
manage  her  great  strong  brother.  Yet  she 
could  not  help  thinking  that  what  Tom  was 
saying  was  all  very  wrong  and  foolish. 


30          BIG  BRUCE   AND  LITTLE  MOSS. 

She  wished  to  say  something  to  comfort 
him,  but  all  she  could  do  was  to  keep 
repeating  "  Oh,  don't  vex  yourself  about  it 
Tom,  dear,  I  daresay  it  will  all  be  better 
than  you  think." 

But  Tom  was  determined  that  it  should 
not  be  better  than  he  thought,  so  his  talk, 
even  with  his  gentle  little  sister,  did  him  no 
good,  and  it  was  in  a  very  wrong  and  obsti- 
nate spirit  that  he  and  most  of  his  school- 
fellows awaited  the  coming  of  the  new 
master. 


CHAPTER    IV. 

SCHOOL  BEGINS. 

T  last  came  the  long-expected  Mon- 
day morning  which  was  to  clear 
up  all  doubts  concerning  the  new  master, 
and  eager  were  the  glances  turned  toward 
the  door  to  catch  the  first  sight  of  him  as 
he  entered  —  alone,  not,  as  they  had  ex- 
pected, as  Mr.  Silver  had  done,  with  the 
minister.  Exactly  as  the  clock  struck 
nine  the  door  opened,  and  the  new  master 
entered  as  quietly  as  if  he  had  been  accus- 
tomed to  it  every  day,  and  took  his  place  at 
the  front  of  the  school. 

(31) 


32          BIG  BEUCE   AND   LITTLE  MOSS. 

First  came  a  breathless  pause,  then  a 
faint  titter  running  through  the  room,  ris- 
ing gradually  to  a  laugh.  "  Wouldn't  old 
Silver  have  laughed  himself  to  see  the  new 
master  stuck  up  there  ?  Why,  only  fancy  ! 
he  actually  had  to  stand  on  a  footstool  to 
look  properly  down  the  room  !  Wasn't  it 
enough  to  make  the  boys  laugh  ?  Such  a 
queer  little  chap,  too  !  Not  near  so  big  as 
Tom  Bruce,  and  as  thin  as  a  whipping-post, 
and  such  a  face  !  Why,  his  eyes  were  big 
enough  for  a  man  double  his  size  !  " 

Clark  heard  Bruce  say  under  his  breath, 
"  Granny,  what  great  big  eyes  you  have  !  To 
look  at  you  with,  my  dear."  And  then 
came  an  explosion  of  laughter  through  the 
whole  school. 

"  Silence  !  "  The  new  master  spoke  very 


SCHOOL  BEGINS.  33 

quietly,  and  somehow  or  other  there  was 
silence  in  the  school,  though  Clarke's  sides 
were  still  shaking,  and  Bruce  knocked 
down  a  slate  off  the  desk,  feeling  half  pro- 
voked that  he  should  have  paid  attention 
to  the  very  first  word  of  such  an  insignifi- 
cant little  fellow. 

Prayers  were  read  and  the  day's  work 
went  on  so  much  as  usual,  that  Bruce 
began  to  think,  "  At  least  he  won't  dare 
alter  any  thing  of  Silver's,  and  we'll  have 
our  way  after  all ;  any  how,  while  I  am 
here,  and  that  won't  be  much  longer!" 
And  he  even  kindly  gave  out  his  opinion 
to  his  companions  after  school,  as  they 
assembled  to  talk  over  "  Little  Moss," 
that  "  so  long  as  he  lets  me  alone  I'll  let 
him  alone." 


34          BIG  BRUCE   AHT>   LITTLE  MOSS. 

There  was  plenty  to  amuse  Bessy  with 
at  home  that  evening.  Tom  was  a  capital 
mimic,  and  even  Mrs.  Bruce  could  not  quite 
help  smiling  as  she  came  upon  her  big  son, 
cramping  up  his  long  legs  and  broad  shoul- 
ders, and  pinching  in  his  round  laughing 
face,  to  show  what  an  "  odd  little  chap  " 

the  new  master  was. 

• 
"  Master    indeed !  "  he    said,   laughing, 

"  I'd  like  to  see  him  trying  to  master  me, 
Bess,  wouldn't  you  ?  Why,  I  could  knock 
him  down  with  a  feather  !  " 

"  But,  Tom,"  said  the  little  girl  more 
gravely,  "  isn't  it  wrong  to  laugh  at  him 
so  ?  he  can't  help  being  small." 

"  He  caw-help  coming  here,  though,  turn- 
ing out  old  Silver,  who  was  the  best 
master  going.  He  sha'n't  have  one  day's 


SCHOOL   BEGINS.  35 

peace  in  the  school,  unless  he  takes  pretty 
good  care  what  he  does." 

Bruce  was  nearly  right,  for  the  next  few 
weeks  at  school  were  by  no  means  peaceful 
ones,  though  whether  "  Big  Bruce "  or 

o  o 

"  Little  Moss  "  was  the  greater  sufferer 
remains  to  be  seen.  It  had  been  one  of 
Mr.  Silver's  habits  to  leave  the  teaching 
of  the  lowest  class  in  the  school  to  one  of 
the  older  boys  during  the  morning,  and  so 
long  as  they  got  sufficient  boxes  on  the  ear 
to  keep  them  from  disturbing  others,  the 
monitor  was  supposed  to  have  done  his 
duty ;  the  little  boys,  indeed,  were  begin- 
ning to  think  that  cuffs  in  class  and  hard 
words  at  home  for  being  backward,  were 
the  natural  beginnings  of  school  life. 

So   on  Tuesday  morning  when   piayera 


36         BIG  BRUCE   AND  LITTLE   MOSS. 

were  over,  Bruce  as  usual  rose  and  was 
marching  down  the  school-room  with 
rather  a  high  head,  as  much  as  to  say 
"  Well,  I'm  master  just  now,  any  how," 
when  Mr.  Moss's  voice  came,  as  it  always 
did,  quietly  and  decidedly,  "  Bruce,  sit 
down."  No  answer.  "  Bruce,  sit  down." 
Still  no  notice,  and  then  the  master  spoke 
out  clear,  and  sharp,  and  stern,  "  Bruce, 
come  here  directly,"  and4here  was  some- 
thing in  his  tone  that  made  Tom  turn, 
almost  in  spite  of  himself,  and  so  for  the 
first  time  Big  Bruce  and  Little  Moss  stood 
face  to  face.  It  was  a  curious  sight,  the 
small,  weak  man  leaning  forward  on  the 
desk,  with  his  pale  face  and  piercing  eyes, 
seeming  to  look  the  boy  through;  and 
Bruce  drawn  up  to  his  full  height,  his  eyes 


SCHOOL   BEGINS.  37 

flashing,  as  with  head  thrown  back  he 
seemed  to  look  down  in  scorn  on  the  new 
master. 

"  Did  you  hear  me  speak  to  you?  " 
"  Yes,"  Bruce  would  have  scorned  to  tell 
a  lie,  and  he  repeated  again  boldly,  "  yes,  I 
did  hear." 

"  Then,  why  did  you  not  do  as  I  said  ?  " 
"  Because  it  was  my  day  to  take  the  third 
class." 

"  /  am  going  to  take  the  third  class  my- 
self to-day,  and  every  day  for  the  present, 
so  that  you  can  get  on  with  your  own  work. 
Now  go  and  sit  down."  Mr.  Moss  spoke 
quietly  and  gently,  scarcely  as  though  he 
were  giving  an  order  at  all;  but  Tom's 
brow  grew  dark,  and  he  stood  clenching  his 
fist  with  anger. 


38         BIG  BKUCE   AND  LITTLE  MOSS. 

"  "What  are  you  waiting  for  Bruce  ?  " 

"Waiting  for?  Whyyl  won't  stand  it, 
that's  all !  Mr.  Silver  never  ordered  me 
about  so.  I  always  took  the  third  class  to- 
day, and  I  will  do  it  as  long  as  I  am  here,  or 
I'll  —  " 

"  You  will  sit  down,  or  leave  the  room  at 
once ;  and  you  will  remain  here  after  school 
is  over,  as  I  have  something  to  say  to  you." 

Mr.  Moss  spoke  in  a  low  tone,  and  to 
Bruce  alone.  For  a  moment  Tom  hesitated ; 
the  anger  within  him  almost  urged  him  tfo 
take  the  master's  word  and  leave  the  school, 
but  his  better  sense  prevailed,  and  he  sat 
down  in  his  place,  not,  however,  without  an 
indignant  glance  round  the  class,  as  much 
as  to  say,  "  Wait  a  bit,  and  I  will  pay  him 
off  presently." 


SCHOOL  BEGINS.  39 

Mr.  Moss's  words  after  school  were  few, 
and  firm,  and  kind. 

"  I  can  understand,"  lie  said,  "  quite  well, 
that  Mr.  Silver  was  a  great  favorite  with 
you  all,  but  that  does  not  alter  the  simple 
fact.  Pie  is  your  master  no  longer.  I  am 
here,  and  so  long  as  you  are  in  the  school  it 
is  your  one  duty  to  obey  my  orders  ;  not 
only  because  of  your  position  as  regards 
myself,  but  also  as  regards  your  school- 
fellows. You  are  the  head  of  the  school, 
and  much  depends  on  your  example.  Tho 
younger  ones  have  learned  to  look  up  to 
you,  and  side  with  you  in  almost  all  things, 
and  it  is  a  serious  thought  for  you,  that  if 
they  become  rebellious  and  undutiful,  the 
fault  will  lie  greatly  with  you." 


CHAPTER    V. 

TOM'S  PICTURE. 

AYS  and  weeks  passed  on,  and,   at 
first  sight,  matters  did  not  seem  to 
improve  at  Burnside  school. 

To  those,  indeed,  who  watched  it  close!}", 
a  change  for  the  better  was  taking  place, 
especially  in  the  lower  half  of  the  school. 
Quiet  rule  and  order  reigned,  where  before 
had  been  confusion  and  discontent ;  each 
little  boy  found  himself  taught  and  cared 
for,  the  backward  brought  on,  the  shy  en- 
couraged. A  quiet  word  did  what  blows 
and  hard  names  had  never  done,  and  Mr. 
(40) 


TOM'S  PICTURE.  41 

Fearon  already  began  to  hope  that  his  bold 
experiment  had  not  proved  to  be  a  failure. 

But  it  is  with  the  first  class  that  we  have 
chiefly  to  do,  and  here  the  prospect  was  by 
no  means  encouraging.  It  was  not  exactly 
that  the  boys  were  unruly  ;  after  the  first, 
even  they  discovered  that  in  "  Little  Moss  " 
they  had  found  a  master.  But  there  was  a 
bad  spirit  abroad  among  them  ;  Bruce  had 
set  the  example,  and  Mr.  Moss  knew  that 
while  it  remained,  nothing  would  go  well. 
He  could  see  it  day  by  day  in  the  sullen 
frowns  when  he  gave  an  order,  the  listless 
inattention  to  his  teaching,  tlv  suppressed 
laugh  or  ready  sneer  when  the  slightest 
pretext  offered.  I  think  even  then,  Bruce 
would  sometimes  have  felt  sorry,  if  he 
could  have  seen  the  sad,  weary  look  that 


42          BIG  BKUCE   AKD   LITTLE   MOSS. 

came  into  the  master's  pale  face  each  day  as 
he  left  the  school,  tired  with  the  long  day's 
work,  and  disheartened  at  the  failure  of  his 
best  efforts  to  win  the  boys'  affection  and 
friendship.  But  when  these  thoughts  came, 
he  would  remember  that  the  fault  was  not 
his  own,  and,  as  he  said  to  himself,  "  all 
woukTbe  well  in  God's  good  time." 

I  don't  know  whether  the  boys  really 
enjoyed  this  state  of  things  very  much,  but 
you  would  have  thought  they  found  it  capi- 
tal fun  to  hear  the  tales  that  were  brought 
home  every  day  of  the  doings  at  the  school. 
"  Oh,  such  a  game  !  Clarke  stuck  out  his 
foot  right  in  Moss's  way,  and  didn't  he 
nearly  come  dowu  on  his  nose  just !  and 
Clarke  says,  '  beg  pardon,  sir,'  as  grave  as 
a  judge,  winking  at  Willis  all  the  while 


TOM'S  PICTURE.  43 

behind  his  book  ;  "  or  "  Such  a  lark  !  to  see 
him  fumbling  about  after  his  keys,  and  John- 
son standing  up,  as  good  as  gold,  with  his 
hand  over  them  ;  "  or,  "  Oh,  wouldn't  you 
have  laughed  just  about  to  see  him  setting  the 
young  chaps  their  sum  to-day,  with  Baker 
just  behind  the  blackboard  taking  him  off 
first-rate,  with  his  back  all  humped  up  as 
like  as  two  peas  ?  " 

One  day  there  was  a  great  piece  of  excite- 
ment in  the  school,  caused  by  a  more  than 
usually  bold  piece  of  impertinence. 

"  Oh  my  !  an't  it  fun  !  " 

"  Oh,  I  say  !  do  let's  have  a  look  Bruce ; 
why,  it's  Little  Moss  himself?  There's  his 
humpback,  and  oh !  ha'n't  he  got  a  jolly 
ugly  face  ?  " 

"  Oh,  let  me  see  —  and  me  —  and  me. 


44          BIG  BBTJCE   AND   LITTLE  MOSS. 

Oh,  I  say,  put  it  away  quick !  he's  a- 
coming !  " 

But  it  was  too  late.  Mr.  Moss  was  in 
the  room  before  they  knew  it,  and  in  another 
minute  the  piece  of  paper  in  question  had 
been  taken  from  the  boy's  hand,  and  the 
roughly-drawn  sketch  of  a  hideous  little 
humpbacked  figure  was  held  up  to  the  whole 
school.  There  was  a  faint  tinge  of  red  on 
the  master's  face  as  he  took  a  long,  curious 
look  at  the  picture,  but  there  was  no  tone 
of  vexation  in  his  voice  as  he  asked,  "  Who 
drew  this?"  There  was  no  answer,  and 
Mr.  Moss  went  on  quietly,  — 

"  I  suppose  the  boy  who  drew  it  must  be 
ashamed  of  it  for  some  reason.  It  is  not 
badly  drawn ;  I  wonder  what  there  is  to 
feel  ashamed  of." 


TOM'S  PICTURE.  45 

Bruce  had  sat  with  his  head  bent  down 
and  his  hands  stuck  deep  into  his  pockets, 
but  he  raised  his  head  now  with  the  hot 
blood  mounting  to  his  forehead : 

"  I'm  not  ashamed.  /  drew  that  pic- 
ture, and  I  don't  care  who  knows  it.  There's 
no  harm  in  drawing." 

"  That's  right,  Bruce.  Never  do  any  thing 
you  are  ashamed  of.  Now  tell  me  whom  it 
is  meant  for." 

Once  more  Tom  looked  up,  but  he  could 
not  meet  the  steady  gaze  fixed  on  him, 
and  his  head  drooped  as  he  muttered  some- 
thing about  "  not  staying  there  to  be 
bullied." 

"  You  may  go  if  you  wish,  but  I  thought 
you  said  you  were  not  ashamed  of  it." 

"  No  more  1  am." 


46          BIG  BKUCE   AND   LITTLE  MOSS. 

"  Very  well,  then,  you  will  not  mind  it's 
being  put  where  all  can  see  how  funny 
it  is." 

"  So  you  can  ;    I  don't  care." 

"  If  you  would  rather  have  it  taken  down 
you  may  do  so ;  we  will  put  the  name  to 
the  picture  to  make  it  complete." 

In  another  minute  Tom's  picture  was 
fixed  on  the  blackboard  where  all  might 
see*it,  and  underneath  was  written  in  large 
letters,  "  C.  Moss,  Master  of  Burnside 
School,  drawn  by  his  head  scholar,  Tom 
Bruce,"  and  then  lessons  went  on  quietly 
as  usual. 

Very  quietly  to-day  ;  there  was  not  a 
smile  in  the  school  for  Tom's  picture  now, 
no  one  even  liked  to  look  at  it ;  and  as  for 
Tom,  I  don't  think  he  ever  forgot  that 


TOM'S  PICTURE.  47 

morning.  At  last  he  could  bear  it  no  longer. 
There  was  a  step  in  the  passage,  and  in 
another  minute  Mr.  Fearon  would  be  in  the 
room.  Any  thing  would  be  better  than  that 
he  should  see  it,  and  Tom  rose,  his  voice 
shaking  with  shame  and  vexation  : 

"  Please,  sir,  may  I  take  that  thing  down  ? 
I  never  meant  you  to  see  it." 

"  No,  I  don't  suppose  you  did.  You  may 
take  it  down  at  once,  and  I  advise  you  to 
draw  something  more  sensible  next  time." 

I  need  hardly  say,  that  before  he  had  done 
speaking,  the  paper  was  torn  into  a  hundred 
pieces,  and  Bruce  never  repeated  the  experi- 
ment. 

One  more  anecdote  I  must  tell  you  of 
those  unhappy  days,  as  it  had  greater  results 
than  any  of  the  boys  thought  for,  and  espe- 


48         BIG  BRUCE   AND  LITTLE   MOSS. 

cially  to  Tom  Bruce,  though  in  this  case 
he  himself  was  not  the  chief  actor.  I  think 
it  is  best  told  in  the  words  of  little  Mat 
Hill,  as  he  stood  talking  to  his  friend  Peter 
Barnet,  the  blacksmith,  one  cold  afternoon 
early  in  October  after  school  was  over. 

"  Well,"  he  said,  as  Peter  laid  a  great 
crowbar  on  the  anvil  all  white  hot  from 
the  furnace,  "  I  know  /  like  sparks,  least- 
ways yours,  master,  these  cold  days." 

"  So  do  most  folks,  I  fancy,  Mat." 

"  Master  don't,  then." 

"  Master  don't  ?   Why,  what's  up  now  ?  " 

"  Why,  Master  Barnet,  there's  no  end  to 
it,  so  far  as  I  can  see." 

"  What  —  to  the  sparks  ?  " 

"  No,  to  the  bother  down  at  the  school. 
I  do  wish  they'd  let  Mr.  Moss  alone,  I  do  ! " 


TOM'S  PICTURE.  49 

"  Well,  what  was  it?  " 

"  Well,  master,  I  call  it  a  downright^ 
shame.  It  was  all  that  great  stupid  Willis, 
who  had  a  lot  of  matches  in  his  pocket 
yesterday,  and  struck  one  of  them  alight 
just  behind  Mr.  Moss's  chair,  and  didn't 
he  give  a  jump  !  It  almost  made  me  laugh 
outright  at  first.  I  could  not  see  his  face 
then,  only  he  spoke  out  so  quick  and 
sudden  like,  not  a  bit  as  he  generally  does, 
and  told  Willis  so  sharp  to  mind  what  he 
was  after,  and  never  bring  matches  to 
school  again." 

"  Well,  I  suppose  it  was  just  this  that  put 
it  into  Clarke's  head,  and  to-da}^  he  or  some  of 
them,  I  could  not  quite  make  out  which, 
brought  some  of  them  cracker  things,  and  put 
one,  of  them  under  the  foot  of  master's  chair. 


50         BIG  BKUCE   AND   LITTLE   MO6S. 

So  when  he  sits  down,  off  it  goes,  and  he'g 
up  like  a  shot.  And  oh  !  you  never  saw  any 
ching  like  his  face.  Why,  it  was  as  white 
as  a  sheet,  and  his  hands  shaking,  and  he 
looks  round  in  such  a  queer  way,  just  as  if 
he  was  wild,  and  his  voice  sounded  so  odd, 
all  of  a  tremble,  and  so  hoarse  that  we  could 
scarcely  hear.  Some  of  them  laughed,  but 
I  felt  quite  frightened,  for  I  did  not  know 
what  was  coming  next.  But  he  only  said, 
quiet-like,  something  about  '  that  must  not 
be  done  again.'  •  Not  a  word  more  ;  and  oh  ! 
Peter,  I  do  wish  they'd  not  have  done  it !  " 

"  Yes,  it's  a  silly  trick ;  "  and  the  black- 
smith thoughtfully  struck  a  shower  of 
sparks  from  the  glowing  iron  with  his  ham- 
mer. 

"  I  wonder  what  it  was  gave  him  such  a 


TOM'S  PICTURE.  51 

turn.  I  don't  know  that  I  ever  heard  of 
such  a  thing.  But  there,  folks  are  different, 
and  depend  upon  it  those  boys  will  repent 
it  some  day  I  " 


CHAPTER    VI. 

THE   CONSPIRACY. 

fifth  of  November  was  always 
a  great  day  with  the  Burnside 
boys.  The  oldest  man  in  the  place  could 
not  recall  a  year  when  there  had  not  been 
fine'doings  to  enliven  the  dull  weather.  In 
the  old  days,  there  had  been  a  yearly  sub- 
scription made,  and  a  grand  procession 
round  the  village  with  flags  and  music, 
ending  in  a  great  bonfire  on  the  top  of 
Cranly  Hill,  and  a  supper  in  Squire  Ring- 
wood's  barn.  But  times  had  changed.  The 
old  squire  was  dead,  and  the  family  had 
(52) 


THE   CONSPIRACY.  53 

been  abroad  for  some  years,  and  people 
seemed  to  lose  interest  in  the  day  when  the 
Tdnd  old  gentleman  was  gone. 

So  of  late  years  it  had  been  left  principal- 
ly to  the  school-boys,  and  a  few  squibs  and 
a  bonfire  in  the  school-yard  were  all  that 
remained  of  "  the  good  old  days."  These, 
however,  were  kept  up  with  unflagging 
spirit,  and,  indeed,  to  such  an  extent  the 
last  year,  that  Mr.  Fearon  had  spoken  seri- 
ously of  having  them  put  an- entire  stop  to 
for  the  future.  There  had  been  complaints 
from  the  farmers,  of  broken  fences,  faggots 
stolen,  and  hedges  rifled  of  wood ;  from 
parents,  of  boys  kept  out  late  at  nights,  in 
bad  company,  of  clothes  torn  and  burned, 
and  stained  with  tar;  and  one  little  boy 


54          BIG  BRUCE   AND  LITTLE   MOSS. 

had  been  seriously  burned  from  handling  a 
cracker  carelessly. 

So  as  the  autumn  drew  on,  the  boys  be- 
gan to  look  very  grave,  and  to  fear  that 
they  would  have  no  sport  this  year. 

"  If  Silver  were  here,"  said  Clarke,  "  he'd 
stick  up  for  us.  Just  see  now  if  that  nasty 
spiteful  fellow,  Moss,  don't  take  this  way  to 
pay  us  off !  I  do  wish  you'd  not  been  such 
a  muff,  Willis,  about  those  matches !  It 
wasn't  so  much  fun,  after  all,  though  you 
did  seem  to  think  such  a  lot  of  it." 

"  Well,  I  know  some  one  else  did,  too ! 
And,  what's  more,  I  don't  believe  we'd  have 
got  the  bonfire  this  year,  matches  or  no 
matches ! " 

"  Yes,  we  should ;  we  might  have  done 
it  on  the  quiet,  so  as  no  one  could  have 


THE   CONSPIRACY.  55 

stopped  it.  We  always  have  had  the  bon- 
fire, and  I  don't  see  why  it  should  be 
stopped  now  because  a  silly  old  woman  like 
him  is  afraid  of  a  spark.  W  hy,  he  deserves 
to  be  made  old  Guy*  himself,  and  to  be 
burned  for  it." 

"  And  so  he  shall,  as  sure  as  my  name's 
Bruce,"  exclaimed  Tom,  who  had  never 
quite  forgotten  the  matter  of  his  drawing  ; 
"  so  he  shall ;  we'll  have  the  bonfire  some- 
where, for  all  he  can  do  to  stop  it,  and 
what's  more,  we!ll  make  a  Guy  with  a 
humpback  and  a  jolly  ugly  mask,  and  sha'n't 
he  burn  just !  Hurrah  I  Three  cheers  for 
old  Guy  Moss  !  " 

*  Guy  Fawkes,  the  leader  of  the  "  Gunpowder  plot," 
the  anniversary  of  which  is  celebrated  in  England  on  the 
6th  of  November. 


56         BIG   BKUCE  AND  LITTLE  MOSS. 

So,  grand  determinations  were  made,  and 
the  boys  thought  themselves  quite  a  set  of 
heroes ;  indeed,  I  don't  think  that  Guy 
Fawkes  himself  plotting  with  his  compan- 
ions to  blow  up  King  and  Parliament  could 
have  felt  much  more  excited  than  did  our 
Burnside  boys  plotting,  as  they  thought,  to 
defeat  the  spite  and  malice  of  this  dreadful 
schoolmaster. 

Some  of  the  little  ones,  indeed,  wondered 
if  he  really  was  such  a  cruel  tyrant  after  all, 
when  he  was  so  kind  to  them  and  kept  the 
big  boys  from  bullying  them,  and  told  such 
nice  stories  at  Sunday  school ;  and  Mat  Hill, 
who  had  a  sensible  little  head  of  his  own, 
had  been  even  heard  to  say,  that  he  didn't 
know  what  all  this  fuss  was  about,  when 
Moss  had  not  said  a  word  yet  one  way  or  tha 


THE   CONSPIRACY.  57 

other  about  the  bonfire,  and  what  was  more, 
if  Moss  did  say  any  thing,  he  would  most 
likely  be  right  and  he,  Mat,  should  stick  by 
him.  Therefore,  poor  Mat  got  much  per- 
secuted and  tormented,  but  did  not  seem 
much  the  worse  for  it,  after  all. 

These  dissenters  from  the  general  opinion, 
however,  gained  little  attention,  being  the 
smaller  and  weaker  half  of  the  school,  and 
every  day  some  new  and  more  daring  plan 
was  suggested,  till  the  scheme,  if  carried 
out,  would  almost  assume  the  form  of  a 
rebellion.  Farmer  Hartopp's  hedges  were 
to  be  ransacked  for  fuel,  and  Master  Dun- 
stable's  straw-yard;  there  was  to  be  an 
expedition  to  Brickington  for  squibs  and 
masks,  and  under  Bruce's  direction  such  an 
old  Guy  was  preparing  as  had  never  been 


58          BIG  BEUCE   AND   LITTLE  MOSS. 

equalled.  Oh  !  wasn't  lie  a  fright !  with  a 
tar  barrel  in  his  body  to  make  him  flare  as 
he  deserved,  and  a  ragged  coat  stuck  all 
over  with  bits  of  colored  paper  and  ribbon, 
with  a  humpback  and  crooked  legs  and  a 
bunch  of  dry  moss  stuck  in  his  hat  so  that 
there  could  be  no  mistake,  and  a  mask  which 
made  little  Bessy  Bruce  hide  her  face  in 
alarm  when  Tom  put  it  on  for  her  to  see. 

"That's  for  old  Guy  Moss,  Bessy,"  he 
said  laughing. 

"  Oh,  don't  say  that !  "  pleaded  the  little 
girl ;  "  he's  not  a  bit  ugly,  when  you  come 
to  look  at  him,  and  he  talks  so  kind  and 
gentle  when  he  comes  in  here  to  see  me,  and 
tells  such  pretty  stories  sometimes.  He  was 
here  for  a  whole  hour  yesterday  while  you 
were  out,  when  I  was  feeling  so  sick  and  bad, 


THE   CONSPIRACY.  59 

and  ho  told  me  about  a  dear  little  sister  lie 
had  once,  called  Bessy  like  me,  and  he  says 
I  remind  him  of  her,  sometimes,  and  that's 
why  he  likes  coming.  And  oh,  Tom,  he  likes 
you,  too,  if  you  would  only  believe  it.  He 
told  mother  you  were  a  fine,  brave  fellow, 
whom  she  might  well  be  proud  of;  and  he 
said  you  were  quite  right  to  like  your  old 
master,  and  he  liked  you  for  it;  and  he 
said  —  " 

"  I  don't  care  what  he  said !  "  broke  in 
Tom  shortly  ;  "  he  sha'n't  get  round  me  with 
his  sneaking  ways  !  If  he  thinks  it  right  to 
stick  up  for  old  Silver,  why  doesn't  he  get 
out  of  his  place,  and  let  the  school  go  on  as 
it  used  to  do  ?  "  and  he  marched  off  whist- 
ling, to  adjust  the  mask  finally  on  old  Guy, 
who  was  now  in  two  more  days  to  astonish 
the  village  with  his  ugliness. 


CHAPTER    VII. 

THE  MASTER'S  PROPOSAL. 

OTHING  was  yet  known  of  Mr. 
Fearon's  intentions  but  dark  rumors 
were  abroad.  He  had  been  seen  in  close  talk 
with  the  schoolmaster,  and  words  had  been 
dropped  which  seemed  full  of  foreboding  to 
the  anxious  boys.  Clarke  had  heard  that  Far- 
mer Hartopp  had  been  up  to  the  parsonage 
declaring  that  if  any  mischief  was  done  this 
year,  he'd  have  up  the  whole  school  before 
the  magistrate  and  no  mistake.  Mrs.  Rob- 
bins,  the  mother  of  the  boy  who  had  been 
hurt  last  year,  said  that  if  she  heard  of  any 
(60) 


THE  MASTER'S  PKOPOSAL.          61 

more  nonsense,  she'd  have  the  constable 
clown  on  them,  even  if  she  had  to  walk  to 
Brickington  herself  for  him.  Hill  said  that 
Master  Barnet  had  told  him  that  Mr.  Fearon 
had  said,  when  he  came  last  to  the  forge, 
that  he  had  had  a  deal  of  talk  with  Moss 
about  the  bonfire,  and  didn't  know  what 
to  say  about  it. 

So,  altogether,  when  the  school  assembled 
on  the  morning  of  the  fourth,  and  Mr.  Moss 
gave  out  that  he  had  something  to  say 
to  the  boys  before  they  began,  there  was 
a  long  silent  dra wing-in  of  breath  all  through 
the  room  —  "  Now  something  is  coming," 
"  Now  we  shall  get  it." 

"  To-morrow  is  the  fifth,"  began  Mr. 
Moss,  smiling  a  little  at  the  solemn  anxious 
faces  round  him ;  "  and  you  have  had  always 


62          BIG  BRUCE  AND  LITTLE  MOSS. 

fine  doings  here,  I  understand.  '  You  see 
no  reason  why  gunpowder  treason  should 
ever  be  forgot,'  eh,  boys  ?  Well,  I've  been 
hearing  a  good  deal  about  it  of  late,  and  it 
seems  you  remembered  it  a  little  too  well 
last  year,  so  Mr.  Fearon  thinks  there  must 
be  no  bonfire  to-morrow." 

Dead  silence  through  the  school,  you 
might  have  heard  a  pin  drop.  Some  of 
the  boys  breathed  hard  and  twisted  their 
buttons  off,  Brace's  face  flushed  scarlet,  and 
he  bit  his  lips  fiercely,  and  then,  after  a 
minute,  his  heart  seemed  to  stop  beating 
with  a  sort  of  dismayed  surprise,  as  Mr. 
Moss  went  on  quietly,  still  smiling,  -  — 

"But  Mr.  Fearon  and  I  have  had  some 
talks  about  it,  as  we  didn't  think  quite  the 
same  at  first,  and  now  that  we  do,  I  want  to 


THE  MASTEE'S  PROPOSAL.         63 

know  if  you  all  think  the  same  as  well. 
That  was  a  bad  job  last  year,  but  I  don't 
see  why,  because  one  makes  a  goose  of  one- 
self once,  one  must  do  it  over  again,  so  Mr. 
Fearon  says  we  may  try  the  old  custom  one 
more  year.  You'd  all  miss  it,  I  know,  and 
especially  as  I  fear  in  some  ways  this  has 
been  a  dull  summer  for  you,  a  change  in 
many  ways  from  last  year  ;  perhaps  some  of 
you  think  a  change  for  the  worse,  and  now 
I  don't  think  any  of  us  want  any  more 
changes  than  need  be.  So  I  hope  you'll 
have  a  famous  bonfire  to-morrow  just  as 
usual,  and  we'll  put  every  thing  amiss  in 
along  with  the  faggots  and  burn  it." 

"Thank  you,  sir — thank  you,"  came  from 
the  lower  end  of  the  school,  where  the  faces 


64          BIG  BRUCE   AND   LITTLE   MOSS. 

were  beginning  to  glow  and  the  eyes  to 
brighten  with  pleasure. 

"  And  now  about  the  fuel.  I  don't  see 
why  we  can't  get  enough  and  more  than 
enough  without  picking  and  stealing  like 
sneaks.  I've  talked  to  Hartopp,  and  Dun- 
stable,  and  Keeper  Jones,  and  they  say,  if 
some  of  you  big  boys  choose  to  go  round 
all  fair  and  honest,  and  ask  what  you  may 
take,  they'll  be  glad  to  help  for  the  sake  of 
old  times." 

There  was  a  curious  murmur  through  the 
school ;  some  of  the  big  boys  fidgeted  and 
looked  at  each  other,  and  presently  Willis 
broke  out  —  "  Thank  you,  sir,  for  speaking 
for  us ;  and  we'll  have  a  jolly  bonfire, 
thanks  to  you,  sir."  And  the  words  were 
echoed  by  all  but  two  or  three.  Then  Mr. 


THE  MASTER'S  PROPOSAL.          65 

Moss  continued  rather  more  gravely,  and 
with  a  queer  shake  in  his  voice,  — 

"  I  wish  I  could  enjoy  the  fun  with  you, 
as  I  know  most  masters  would  do,  but  it's 
not  much  in  my  way,  and  I  fear  I  should 
only  spoil  your  sport.  You  must  not  be  too 
ready  to  laugh  at  me,  for  there's  a  reason 
which  some  of  you  may  perhaps  know  some 
day,  and  then  you  will  understand  why  I 
don't  tell  it  out  now.  We  must  believe  in 
each  other,  boys,  or  we  shall  never  get  on 
together.  1  believe  you  will  be  steady,  and 
give  me  your  word  that  all  shall  go  right 
and  keep  it ;  and  you  must  believe  that  I 
like  you  to  have  pleasure,  and  would  share 
it  if  I  could.  I  shall  be  away  most  of  the 
evening,  at  any  rate  till  eight  o'clock,  so  if 
I  come  back  I  shall  only  see  the  end  of  it. 


66         BIG  BRUCE  AND  LITTLE  MOSS. 

And  now"  —  he  went  on,  making  such  a 
queer,  solemn  face,  that  the  small  boys  tit- 
tered, and  the  big  ones  wondered  what  was 
coming,  as  he  laid  his  hand  on  a  big  brown 
paper  parcel  that  lay  on  the  desk  beside 
him,  —  "  what  is  to  be  done  with  this  ?  " 

"  Please,  sir,  what  is  it  ?  "  came  from  sev- 
eral eager  voices. 

"  All  in  good  time.  I  was  going  to  tell 
you  that  I  was  in  Brickington  yesterday, 
where  they  seem  as  mad  about  poor  old 
Guy  Fawkes  as  you  are  ;  and  of  course  I 
could  not  have  Brickington  beat  Burnside, 
so  I  was  foolish  enough  to  load  myself  with 
this  bundle  of  rubbish  which  is  only  fit  to 
be  burned  ;  and  now  I  want  to  know  which 
of  you  will  see  that  it  is  burned  without 
doing  any  mischief." 


THE  MASTER'S  PROPOSAL.          07 

"  Fireworks  !  —  oh,  how  jolly  !  —  oh,  I'll 
let  'em  off,  sir !  —  and  I  —  and  I  —  " 

The  murmur  was  rising  fast  into  noise, 
but  it  needed  only  a  sign  from  the  master 
to  restore  silence. 

"  Well,  it  seems  there  are  plenty  to  burn 
them  ;  but  what  I  want  to  find  are  some 
who  can  let  them  off  to  the  best  advantage, 
and  tb  see  that  no  tricks  are  played  with 
them,  as  these  fireworks  want  careful  hand- 
ling, or  they  will  not  even  burn  properly. 
Who  knows  most  about  Catherine-wheels 
and  Roman  candles  ?  " 

"I,  sir  —  I  do  —  I've  seen  many  of  'em 
let  off,  leastways  little  ones !  " 

"  Well,  I  shall  give  them  into  the  keeping 
of  the  first  class,  on  condition  that  they  give 
me  their  word  that  no  mischief  is  done. 


68         BIG  BEUCE   AND   LITTLE  MOSS. 

None  but  the  elder  boys  are  to  handle  them, 
and  there  is  to  be  no  throwing  of  squibs  or 
crackers  outside  the  school-gate.  Will  you 
all  give  me  your  word  for  this  ?  " 

"  Yes,  sir  — yes,  sir  —  we'll  do  all  as  you 
wish,  sir,  and  thank  you  kindly !  " 

"  That's  all  right,  then !  Now  keep  your 
word  like  men,  and  a  good  bonfire  and  a 
merry  evening  to  you  all !  " 


y. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

TOM'S  GUY. 

MONG  all  the  boys  of  Burnside 
school,  there  was  but  one  who  went 
home  that  evening  with  a  heavy  heart,  and 
that  was  Tom  Bruce.  Outwardly,  you 
would  have  said  he  had  had  his  own  way, 
yet  in  his  heart  he  felt  that  he  was  beaten 
and  disappointed.  Little  Moss  had  won  the 
victory,  after  all,  and  won  it,  too,  with  his 
own  weapons.  It  had  not  been  the  bonfire 
he  so  much  cared  for,  not  even  his  love  for 
his  old  master  making  him  jealously  anxious 
to  support  what  he  had  done ;  but  it  was 
(69) 


70          BIG  BKTJCE   AND   LITTLE  MOSS. 

his  own  evil  temper  to  which  he  had  given 
way  at  first,  and  which  had  got  the  mastery 
over  him.  There  was  no  concealing  it  now, 
and  Tom  felt  very  miserable  as  he  turned 
from  the  other  boys,  and  walked  home  slow- 
ly and  sadly  by  himself.  He  could  not  stay 
and  talk  with  the  rest  as  usual ;  they  were 
singing  the  master's  praises  all  the  more 
loudly,  for  having  been  silent  so  long  ;  many, 
who  had  been  ashamed  to  say  so  before,  de- 
claring that  they  had  long  "  thought  there 
must  be  something  in  him,"  and  that  he 
was  a  "  plucky  little  chap,"  after  all. 

"  Three  cheers  for  Moss  !  And  oh  !  an't 
he  a  regular  brick  just,  about  those  fire- 
works !  —  Do  let's  have  a  look  at  the  box, 
Clarke  !  —  Oh  my  !  an't  they  just  a  stunning 


TOM'S  GUY.  71 

lot !  —  Won't  we  have  a  jolly  flare  up  !  — 
Why,  Brickington  will  be  nothing  to  it !  " 

What  could  poor  unhappy  Tom  do  but 
wander  home  slowly  and  sadly,  and  take  his 
place  at  the  tea-table  silently,  wishing  for 
the  first  time  that  little  Bessy  would  not  be 
so  talkative,  and  full  of  to-morrow's  doings  ? 

"  Oh  Tom !  you  like  Mr.  Moss  now, 
don't  you  ?  I'm  sure  I  do  ;  and  oh  !  I'd 
like  to  see  the  fireworks  so  !  Priestly  came 
in  just  now,  and  he  says  they  will  be  so  grand 
and  there's  one  great  Catherine-wheel  ever 
so  big  ;  and  he  says  it's  just  like  those  they 
had  when  Miss  Ringwood  was  married,  and 
it  all  shoots  out  red,  and  blue,  and  green,  just 
like  a  great  starfish,  changing  colors  every 
minute,  and  all  kinds  of  beautiful-  things  in 
the  middle.  Oh,  Tom  !  I  should  like  to  see 


72         BIG  BEUCE   AND   LITTLE  MOSS. 

it !  and  I've  been  asking  mother,  and  she 
says — " 

"  It's  of  no  use,  Bess,  you  can't  see  any 
thing  from  here,  and  it's  a  deal  too  cold  for  you 
to  be  out  at  night  now.  I'll  tell  you  all  about 
it  if  I  go,  and  I've  half  a  mind  not  to,  for  it's 
all  so  stupid  now,  and  we  can't  even  burn  old 
Guy,  after  all  the  trouble." 

"  Not  burn  old  Guy !  Oh,  Tom,  why  not  ? 
.  That's  just  what  I've  been  wanting  to  talk 
to  you  about.  I'd  been  thinking  about  it 
myself,  when  I  heard  how  kind  Mr.  Moss 
had  been,  thinking  how  ungrateful  it  would 
seem  to  burn  him,  and  how  ugly  you'd  made 
him,  for  mother  had  left  the  back  door  open, 
and  I  could  see  him  quite  plain  stuck  up  in 
the  wood-house,  when  in  came  Mr.  Moss 
himself  and  saw  him,  and  didn't  he  laugh, 


TOM'S  GUY.  73 

and  says  '  why,  you've  got  a  Guy,  have  you, 
Bessy  ?  Why,  what  an  ugly  old  fellow,  to 
be  sure  ! '  And  then  he  looked  closer  at  it ; 
and  oh,  Tom  !  I  felt  my  face  getting  hotter 
and  hotter,  and  then  he  says,  'A  humpback, 
too  !  I  never  saw  one  like  that  before  ; 
what  put  it  into  Tom's  head,  I  wonder  ? ' 
and  then  he  gave  such  an  odd  look  at  me, 
and  then  I  think  he  saw  the  moss  in  the  hat 
and  I  felt  quite  cold  all  over  and  just  fit  to 
choke,  and  he  looked  so  grave  just  for  a  min- 
ute, not  exactly  cross,  Tom,  only  sorry,  and  I 
could  not  help  crying  out,  '  Oh  don't  be  an- 
gry please,  sir,  I'm  sure  Tom  didn't  mean 
any  harm  ! '  And  then  he  came  and  sat 
down  by  my  side,  and  he  didn't  look  a  bit 
sorry  now,  and  he  began  to  laugh,  and  said, 
'  Why,  Bessy,  what  a  little  goose  to  be  sure  1 


74          BIG  BIITJCE   AND   LITTLE  MOSS. 

So  Tom's  been  making  a  Guy  of  me,  has  he  ? 
I  must  be  a  very  ugly  old  man  indeed  ? 
Well,  I'm  only  glad  it's  not  myself  he  is  go- 
ing to  burn,  that's  all.  I'm  afraid  I  should 
not  be  so  merry  over  it  as  old  Guy  there, 
And  then  he  talked  about  other  things,  and 
did  not  seem  to  mind  a  bit  about  Guy,  and 
when  he  went  out  he  said,  '  Tell  Tom  I  hope 
his  Guy  will  burn  to  his  heart's  content,  and 
that  I'd  come  and  see  him  myself  if  I  could.' 
And  oh,  Tom  !  I  do  wish  you  hadn't  done 
it."  And  the  little  girl  began  to  cry. 

Tom  made  no  answer ;  indeed,  he  had 
none  to  make  except  a  muttered  exclama- 
tion of  "  Don't  be  a  goose,  Bess  !  What  is 
there  to  cry  about  ?  "  So  the  little  girl  hard- 
ly knew  what  to  make  of  it,  and  nothing 
more  passed  that  evening. 


TOM'S  GUY.  75 

Tom  was  off  early  the  next  day  without 
another  word  on  the  subject,  and  the  only 
apparent  result  of  Bessy's  tale  was  old  Guy 
lying  dismantled  on  the  floor  of  the  wood- 
house,  the  mask  and  coat  torn,  the  tar-barrel 
broken,  and  the  hat  kicked  into  a  corner. 

Bessy  was  not  at  all  happy  all  day ;  she 
feared  she  had  made  Tom  angry  and  spoiled 
his  evening's  enjoyment,  and  she  longed  to 
see  him  again,  so  as  to  set  things  straight  if 
she  could. 

But  he  did  not  come  in  to  dinner,  and 
toward  the  end  of  the  afternoon  Mrs.  Bruce 
said,  "  Tom  must  be  mightily  busy  with  his 
bonfire  to  have  forgotten  you,  Bess  !  I  never 
knew  him  so  before,  he  might  at  least  have 
been  in  to  see  if  you  were  coming." 

"  He  said  yesterday  it  would  be  too  late 


76          BIG  BRUCE   AND  LITTLE  MOSS. 

for  me,"  said  the  little  girl  with  a  sigh ; 
"  but  I'd  have  liked  to  see  it  dearly,  mother, 
and  all  the  more  now  that  horrid  old  Guy 
is  done  with." 

"  Well,  deary,  your  father  and  I  have 
been  thinking  it  over ;  it's  a  nice  mild  even- 
ing, and  you  seem  pretty  well,  and  I  don't 
see  that  it  would  harm  you  to  be  out  for 
half  an  hour  or  so,  if  you  were  well  wrapped 
up  in  my  ftiick  shawl,  and  the  warm  jacket 
underneath." 

"  Oh,  mother  !  "  and  the  pale  little  face 
brightened  with  pleasure  ;  "  but,  how  could 
I  ever  get  there  ?  and  besides,  they  don't 
let  any  but  the  boys  into  the  yard,  and  if 
they  did,  it  would  be  no  place  for  me." 

"Well,  we've  thought  of  that,  too,  dear, 
and  Granny  Goodwin  says  that  you  may  sit 


TOM'S  GUY.  77 

up  in  her  little  back  window  that  looks  right 
over  the  school-yard,  and  you'd  see  it  all 
beautiful.  She  an't  at  home  herself,  to- 
night, as  her  daughter's  ill  over  at  Lowmore 
and  she's  gone  to  be  with  her  ;  but  she  left 
the  key  with  me,  and  says  you  can  put  the 
cushion  out  of  her  chair  up  in  the  window- 
seat,  so  you'll  sit  and  see  it  all  as  comforta- 
ble as  a  queen.  You  will  not  mind  being 
left  a  bit  after  you're  settled,  while  I  run 
down  to  take  the  shirts  to  Mrs.  Stephens, 
for  they  must  be  home  to-night,  and  I 
shouldn't  be  away  more  than  ten  minutes." 
Bessy  was  too  delighted  with  the  unex- 
pected treat  to  make  any  objections,  and  by 
the  time  seven  o'clock  came,  all  her  troubles 
were  forgotten,  as  she  found  herself  perched 


78         BIG  BKFCE  AND  LITTLE   MOSS. 

in  Granny  Goodwin's  window,  "  able,"  as 
she  said  herself,  "  to  look  down  on  the  test 
of  them." 


CHAPTER     IX. 

THE  DISASTER. 

ELL,  it  was  a  bonfire,  to  be  sure ! 
Every  one  knows  what  a  good  bon- 
iire  is.  First  the  great  black  heap  of  fag- 
gots —  and  there  was  a  great  heap  indeed, 
thanks  to  Farmer  Hartopp's  good-nature  ;  — 
then  the  exciting  moment,  the  tiny  match 
flickering  in  the  breeze  ;  the  first  little  curl- 
ing wreath  of  smoke,  the  first  small  blue 
flame,  the  -crackling  and  sputtering ;  then 
the  straw  catching  with  a  great  sudden  flare, 
and  the  flames  leaping  bright  and  fierce  in 
all  directions.  Hurrah !  heap  it  up !  See 
(  79) 


80         BIG  BRUCE  AND  LITTLE   MOSS. 

how  the  red  gleam  lights  up  the  eager  boys' 
faces  all  round  and  shines  on  every  thing; 
the  school-house,  the  gate  with  the  people 
standing  outside,  even  the  dull  sky  glows 
like  a  furnace  ;  I  should  think  they  must  see 
it  half  way  to  Brickington.  And  now  when 
the  fire  is  at  its  height,  and  every  one  is  busy 
piling  on  fresh  fuel,  —  crack  !  bang  !  off 
goes  the  first  rocket,  and  a  squib  bounces 
right  across  the  yard.  Then  another  rocket, 
another,  —  and  another,  —  blue,  red,  green, 
gold,  —  oh  !  isn't  it  fine  ? 

"  Three  cheers  for  Moss !  There's  a 
Catherine-wheel !  Oh,  isn't  that  grand  ? 
Don't  he  spin  ?  faster  —  faster,  purple,  gold, 
red,  all  the  colors  of  the  rainbow.  Hip, 
hip,  hurrah !  Three  more  for  Moss,  and 
three  for  Mr.  Fearon  !  " 


THE   DISASTER.  81 

"  I  say,  Tom,  give  us  a  squib,  there's  a 
brick  !  "  The  speaker  was  one  of  Farmer 
Dunstable's  boys,  who  stood  in  the  lane 
looking  enviously  at  the  lucky  school-boys 
in  the  yard,  and  he  addressed  Torn  Bruce, 
who,  spite  of  his  ill-temper,  could  not  quite 
resist  the  bonfire,  though,  as  he  declared 
over  and  over  again,  "  there  was  no  fun  in 
it  now.  " 

"  I  can't, "  he  replied  shortly,  as  Bill 
Brent  again  pressed  his  request. 

"Can't!  why,  you've  a  couple  in  your 
hand  now,  and  there's  a  lot  more  in  the  box ; 
what  a  selfish  chap  you  are,  to  be  sure  !  " 

"You  might  have  them  all  for  what  I 
care,  only  —  " 

"  Only  what  ?  " 

"  Duly,  "  broke  in  Mat  Hill's  voice  boldly, 


82         BIG  BKTJCE   AND  LITTLE  MOSS. 

"Mr.  Moss  said  none  were  to  be  thrown 
outside  the  gate,  or  you  should  have  them 
in  a  minute." 

"  Oh,  I  see !  Tied  to  Mammy  Moss's 
apron-string  !  Pretty  little  dears  !  " 

"  It's  not  that,  "  said  Hill  gravely ;  "  and 
it's  a  shame  of  you  to  say  it,  Bill.  Moss 
gave  us  the  fireworks,  and  we  promised — " 

"  Good  little  dears  !  "  murmured  Brent 
again. 

"  Hold  your  stupid  tongue,  Hill !  "  burst 
out  Tom  furiously.  "  We  promised,  indeed ! 
You  did,  you  mean,  /never  promised  any 
thing,  nor  will  I,  for  he's  no  master  of  mine  ; 
so  there's  for  your  promises  !  "  and  in  a  mo- 
ment more  Bruce  had  turned  the  contents 
of  the'  box  into  the  lane.  Another  instant, 
and  squibs  and  crackers  were  flying  in  all 


THE   DISASTEB.  83 

directions,  amid  shouts  of  laughter,  mingled 
at  times  with  exclamations  of  fear,  as  one 
flung  by  a  careless  hand  lighted  dangerously 
near  a  dress  or  cloak. 

Bruce  did  not  wait  to  see  the  effect  of  his 
words.  Without  waiting  to  hear  more,  he 
had  vaulted  over  the  school-gate,  and  in  a 
few  minutes  was  lying  on  his  bed  at  home 
sobbing  out  his  anger  and  irritation.  "  I 
'wish  I  had  not  gone  !  What  a  fool  that  Hill 
is  I  What  a  fool  I  was  to  mix  myself  up  with 
it  at  all !  I  wish  I'd  staid  at  home  instead 
along  with  Bess.  "  And  then  all  of  a  sud- 
den there  flashed  into  his  mind  for  the  first 
time  since  she  had  spoken  them,  the  little 
girl's  words,  "  Oh,  Tom,  I'd  like  to  go  so  !  " 
He  had  scarcely  heeded  them  at  the  time, 
and  his  mind  had  been  so  full  of  other 


84          BIG  BRUCE   AND   LITTLE   MOSS. 

things,  that  he  had  actually  forgotten  her 
who  was  usually  his  first  thought  in  all 
things. 

What  a  dull  evening  she  must  be  having  ! 
Mother  was  out,  he  knew,  and,  now  he  came 
to  think  of  it,  there  was  no  light  in  the 
parlor  window ;  surely  she  had  not  been  for- 
gotten !  He  rose  directly  and  went  down 
stairs.  The  fire  was  alight  still,  and  showed 
him  that  the  room  was  empty.  She  must 
have  gone  then,  after  all,  and  now  he  re- 
membered that  mother  had  called  to  him  just 
as  he  went  out  in  the  morning,  something 
about  "  helping  with  Bess,  "  but  he  had  not 
heeded  her.  As  he  stood  thinking,  a  sudden 
shout  out  of  doors  made  him  start  and  stand 
listening. 

"  Fire  ! "  there  it  was  again  !     And  as  he 


THE   DISASTER.  85 

ran  down  the  garden-path  a  fresh  blaze 
leaped  up  into  the  sky  where  the  bonfire- 
light  was  dying  out. 

Some  one  passed  him  in  the  road,  and  he 
called  out,  "What  is  it?  Why  are  they 
calling  '  fire  ?  '  " 

"  Why,  it's  Granny  Goodwin's  cottage,  " 
answered  the  man,  "  that's  blazing  away 
there,  worse  luck !  and  no  help  for  it,  as  I 
can  see,  for  they  can't  get  water  fast  enough. 
Thank  God  !  the  poor  old  woman  was  out." 

It  took  Tom  a  very  short  time  to  join 
the  group  of  terrified  spectators  gathered 
round  the  burning  house,  and  to  hear  how 
it  had  happened.  A  burning  rocket-stick 
had  been  thrown  in  the  height  of  the  excite- 
ment, where  it  fell  unnoticed  on  the  dry 
thatch  of  Granny  Goodwin's  cottage.  There 


86          BIG   BRCJCE   AND   LITTLE  MOSS. 

it  had  smouldered  awhile  concealed  by  a 
chimney,  and  the  mischief  was  only  discov- 
ered when  a  sudden  blaze  of  light  and  puff 
of  smoke  told  that  the  fire  had  begun. 

This,  then,  was  the  sudden  and  terrible 
punishment  of  Tom's  disobedience  ;  but  the 
worst  was  yet  to  come,  and  the  unhappy 
boy  turned  sick  with  fear  and  horror,  as  a 
rising  murmur  came  through  the  crowd, 
"Some  one  is  in  the  house  !  "  —  some  one 
— a  girl  —  at  the  upper  window,  round  which 
the  cruel  flames  were  already  playing,  show- 
ing with  terrible  distinctness  the  white  face 
of  the  helpless  child  clinging  to  the  window- 
frame  within.  And  then  from  among  the 
crowd  came  a  cry  of  bitter  anguish,  and 
Tom  heard  his  mother's  voice  exclaim,  "  Oh, 
Bessy !  my  darling !  Oh,  save  her !  O 


THE   DISASTER.  87 

Lord,  have  mercy  on  us  !  "  And  the  agonized 
mother's  prayer  was  heard,  for  just  then 
some  one  came  pushing  through  the  people, 
and  there  was  a  murmur,  "It's  the  master ! 
It's  Mr.  Moss !  " 

And  then  just  for  a  minute  Tom  heard 
the  well-known  voice  speaking  quietly  to 
some  one  near  him,  — 

"  Some  of  you  get  as  near  as  you  can  to 

« 

the  window  to  catch  her  when  I  say  '  ready.' 
I^on't  all  come ;  there  is  just  time,  if  you 
look  out." 

Then  he  had  vanished  through  the  door 
into  the  cottage,  and  in  another  minute  the 
crooked  figure  appeared  in  the  window, 
standing  out  black  against  the  glare,  quiet 
and  steady  as  if  he  were  in  his  place  at 
school,  while  little  Bessy  was  lifted  dowo 


88         BIG  BEUCE   AND  LITTLE  MOSS. 


safely  and  tenderly  into  the  many   eager 
arms  outstretched  to  receive  her. 

Oh,  boys  !  there  are  moments  that  come 
to  us  all,  early  or  late,  that  seem  to  stand 
out  clear  and  distinct  to  the  very  end  of  our 
lives,  just  as  though  a  strong  light  were  cast 
on  them  from  above.  And  to  poor  Tom 
Bruce  this  moment  was  such  a  one,  and  to 
the  end  of  his  life  he  never  forgot  it,  stand- 
ing out  awfully  clear  in  the  cruel  red  fire- 
light. What  followed  those  few  terrible 
minutes  he  could  scarcely  recall  afterwards. 
He  dimly  remembered  his  father  carrying 
little  Bessy  tenderly  home,  and  how  she  lay 
on  the  bed  white  and  still,  holding  her 
mother's  hand,  and  gazing  from  one  to  an- 
other with  her  great  eyes  full  of  a  sort  of 
terrified  surprise  that  cut  Tom  to  the  heart. 


THE   DISASTER.  89 

Late  in  the  evening  there  came  a  message 
to  the  cottage  that  there  would  be  no  school 
next  clay,  nor  perhaps  for  several  days,  as 
Mr.  Moss  was  ill,  and  the  doctor  said  he 
must  be  kept  very  quiet. 

Those  few  quiet  days  were  of  great  im- 
portance to  Tom  Bruce,  for  they  gave  him 
leisure  to  grieve  over  his  fault,  and  left  him 
humbler  and  better  and  full  of  earnest  re- 
solves to  live  differently  by  God's  help  for 
the  future. 


CHAPTER  X. 

THE  MASTER'S  STOEY. 

AY  I  come  in,  sir  ?  " 

"  To  be  sure  you  may." 
Once  more  Big  Bruce  and  Little    Moss 
came  face  to  face ;  but  oh,  in  how  different 
a  spirit  ! 

The  master  sat  in  the  window  of  his  little 
room,  scarcely  recovered  enough  yet  from 
the  shock  of  the  fire  to  take  his  place  in 
school,  though  he  declared  positively  that 
this  must  be  his  last  day  of  idleness,  and 
work  must  begin  to-morrow.  Among  the 
many  who  had  come  daily  to  inquire  after 
(90) 


THE  MASTER'S  STORY.  91 

him,  Tom  Bruce  had  been  the  most  constant, 
and  it  was  a  great  pleasure  to  him  when  one 
day  word  was  brought  to  Tom  that  Mr.  Moss 
would  like  him  to  come  and  sit  with  him  a 
bit  the  next  evening. 

As  you  may  imagine,  however,  his  feelings, 
as  he  entered  that  quiet  little  room,  were  by 
no  means  of  unmingled  pleasure.  Keen, 
indeed,  was  the  pain  of  seeing  yet  another 
fresh  proof  of  all  the  suffering  nis  folly  had 
caused.  Oh,  how  he  hated  himself,  as  he 
looked  on  the  master's  white  face  and  bent 
figure  !  What  a  poor  cowardly  fellow  Big 
Bruce  seemed  now  !  What  a  grand  brave 
spirit  was  in  little  Moss  ! 

"  I'm  so  glad  you've  come,  Bruce,"  said 
the  master  kindly,  holding  out  his  hand. 

"  No,  don't  beg  my  pardon,"  he  continued, 


92          BIO  BRUCE   AND   LITTLE  MOSS. 

as  -Tom  choked  out  some  broken  words  of 
sorrow ;  "  we  comprehend  all  that,  and  I 
hope  we  shall  understand  each  other  really 
and  truly.  It  has  all  been  a  miserable  mis- 
take, and  thank  God  for  clearing  it  up,  even 
though  it  has  been  in  a  terrible  way.  But 
now  I  want  you  to  sit  down  while  I  tell  you 
a  story  which  I  had  never  thought  to  tell  any 
one  again.  But  you  and  I,  Tom,  have  been 
brought  very  near  together  in  a  wonderful 
way,  and  I  think  it  is  well  you  should  feel 
it  as  I  do.  Come,  stir  the  fire  and  sit  down 
that  side  of  the  window,  and  don't  mind  if 
I  stop  sometimes,  for  there  are  some  things 
in  my  tale  which  are  hard  to  speak  of." 

Bruce  did  as  he  was  told,  and  then  sat 
waiting  patiently,  till  after  a  pause,  Mr.  Moss 


THE  MASTER'S  STOKY.  93 

began  speaking  at  first  slowly,  as  if  he  did 
so  with  difficulty  :  — 

"  I  had  once  a  little  sister  called  Bessy, 
like  yours,  Tom.  I  will  not  say  that  I  loved 
her  more  than  you  do  yours,  though  I  some- 
times fancy  that  no  one  can  love  a  sister  as 
I  loved  her ;  she  was  all  that  I  had  in  the 
world.  Our  father  died  before  her  birth, 
and  our  mother  just  when  she  could  run 
alone,  and  we  were  left  to  the  care  of  an 
uncle.  He  was  a  kind  man  at  heart,  for  we 
were  well  cared  for,  but  he  had  never  had 
children  of  his  own,  and  had  not  the  natural 
love  for  them  which  is  after  all  more  than 
any  thing  else  to  the  young  ones.  His  house- 
keeper, too,  was  a  cross,  fidgety  old  woman, 
always  scolding  and  finding  fault,  so  that 
Bessy  learned  to  look  up  to  and  cling  to  me, 


94        BIG  BRUCE   AND   LITTLE   MOSS. 

and  I  to  care  for  her  almost  as  if  she  were 
my  own  child,'  though  really  there  was  but 
five  years'  difference  between  us.  It  was 
when  she  was  just  four,  and  I  close  upon 
nine,  that  I  lost  her,  and  it  is  of  this  I  want 
to  tell  you  if  I  can.  I  wish  I  could  make 
you  see  her  as  she  was  then :  like  your  Bessy 
she  had  blue  eyes,  but  so  different,  always 
laughing  and  full  of  happiness  ;  and  such  a 
dear  little  bright  face,  all  rosy  and  dimpled, 
so  full  of  life  and  health,  as  if  no  pain  nor 
sorrow  could  spoil  its  beauty.  Ah !  God 
knows  best ! " 

Here  came  a  pause,  and  Bruce  could  see 
in  the  shadow  of  the  window  that  the  mas- 
ter had  covered  his  face  with  his  hands. 
Presently  he  continued  :  — 

"  The  next  day  was  Bessy's  birthday,  and 


THE  MASTEE'S  STORY.  95 

before  she  went  to  bed  we  had  been  talking 
of  what  we  would  do  to  make  it  pleasant, 
and  I  had  promised  her  a  little  doll,  which 
she  had  long  set  her  heart  upon  in  a  neigh- 
boring shop,  and  which  I  now  found  I  had 
saved  enough  to  buy  for  her.  Uncle  was 
away  from  home,  and  Mrs.  Ford  was  spend- 
ing the  evening  with  a  friend,  leaving  me  to 
get  our  tea  and  put  Bessy  to  bed. 

"  Ah  !  how  well  I  remember  her,  as  she 
knelt  by  my  side  that  night  to  say  her 
prayers,  with  the  little  pink  bare  feet  peep- 
ing out,  and  the  dear  little  soft  hands  folded, 
and  the  bright  eyes  closed  reverently  as  she 
repeated  her  simple  words : 


'  In  the  kingdom  of  thy  grace, 
Grant  a  little  child  a  place.' 


96         BIG  BEUCB   AND  LITTLE   MOSS. 

Ah,  how  soon  was  that  last  petition  to  be 
answered ! 

"  I  remember  lifting  her*  into  bed,  and 
feeling  her  soft  arms  round  my  neck  as  she 
said,  with  her  rosy  mouth  close  to  my  ear, 
'  To-morrow,  Charlie  !  oh,  won't  we  be  happy 
to-morrow ! '  and  then  she  nestled  down  her 
head  and  fell  asleep,  holding  my  hand.  It 
was  a  very  hot  night,  though  we  were  half 
way  through  September,  so  I  placed  the 
window  wide  open,  and  as  I  did  st>  the 
thought  came  into  my  head^  how  pleased  she 
would  be  i-f  I  could  get  the  doll  in  time  for 
her  to  see  when  she  woke  in  the  morning. 
It  would  not  take  me  five  minutes  to  run 
down  to  the  shop,  and  I  should  be  back  be- 
fore Mrs.  Ford  returned ;  Bessy  was,  I 
knew,  sound  asleep,  so  she  would  not  miss 


THE  MASTER'S  STORY.  97 

me.  I  was  only  a  child  myself,  you  see, 
and  no  wiser  than  others,  though  in  some 
ways  having  to  mind  Bessy  had  made  me 
thoughtful.  '  I'll  leave  the  light  here  while 
I  go,'  I  thought,  'in  case  she  should  wake,' 
and  once  more  I  stood  looking  at  my  dar- 
ling. Once  more  !  only  once  !  sleeping  so 
sweetly  with  the  round  white  arms  tossed 
up  on  the  pillow  among  the  tumbled  brown 
curls,  and  the  soft  little  innocent  face  all 
flushed  and  dimpled,  with  a  smile  still  part- 
ing the  baby  mouth.  Oh,  it  was  a  fair  flow- 
er to  be  plucked  so  rudely  !  No  —  no,  I 
don't  mean  that !  God's  hand  is  always 
kind  —  very  kind  and  gentle  ! 

"  Just  as  I  stood  looking  at  her  the  clock 
struck  eight,  and  fearing  to  be  late,  I  set 
the  candle  down  on  a  little  table  near  the 


98         BIG  BRUCE  AITD  LITTLE  MOSS. 

bed,  and  ran  down  stairs  leaving  the  door 
open  in  my  haste.  I  remember  feeling  the 
fresh  wind  blow  through  my  hair  as  I  ran 
down  the  street,  and  thinking  it  had  got  up 
suddenly  and  might  be  for  rain,  which  was 
much  needed  just  then. 

"  There  were  some  other  people  in  the  toy- 
shop, so  that  I  had  to  wait  for  some  time,  and 
thenthe  man  brought  several  things  for  me 
to  choose  from,  and  I  let  some  time  slip  by 
while  I  was  deciding  which  would  really 
please  Bessy  most,  and  then  I  heard  a  sud- 
den cry  in  the  street.  I  n  eed  not  tell  you, 
Tom,  what  I  felt  when  at  length  I  under- 
stood that  the  place  where  my  darling  lay 
asleep,  was  on  fire.  I  could  not  speak  of  it, 
and  you  don't  need  that  I  should.  I  don't 
even  now  rightly  understand  how  I  came  to 


THE  MASTER'S  STORY.  99 

know  about  it,  or  whether  I  only  guessed, 
thinking  of  it  afterwards,  how  it  all  hap- 
pened. But  it  must  have  been  so,  —  the 
candle  left  flaring  on  the  low  table,  the  sud- 
den puff  of  wind  among  the  dimity  curtains 
of  the  bed,  so  that  it  must  have  been  in 
flames  before  any  one  outside  knew  of  it. 
I  know  not  how  it  was  I  reached  the  room 
alive,  still  less  how  I  left  it ;  no  one  could 
have  seen  me  go,  or  I  should  never  have 
been  allowed  to  attempt  it.  I  had  no  thought 
but  of  Bessy,  as  I  struggled  up  the  narrow 
stairs,  and  through  the  door-way  choked  with 
hot  stifling  smoke.  I  knew  that  I  was 
scorched  and  suffocated,  that  my  hair  was 
burnt,  my  hands  and  feet  blistered,  my  eyes 
blinded,  my  ears  deafened  by  the  rushing 
flames  ;  that  I  had  staggered  to  the  bedside, 


100       BIG  BKUCE   AND  LITTLE  MOSS. 

that  I  had  something  ID  my  arms,  and  was 
struggling  once  more  to  find  the  stairs,  and 
then  came  a  crash,  and  a  heavy  fall,  and  I 
knew  no  more  .  .  .  Oh,  Tom !  God  is 
merciful !  I  have  to  say  it  over  many  times 
when  I  think  of  that  night,  and  I  thank  him 
that  I  can  say  it  truly,  or  how  terrible  it 
would  be  to  think  '  Why  did  he  send  such 
sorrow  ?  Why  did  he  take  away  my  dar- 
ling ?  or,  taking  her,  why  did  he  not  Jet  the 
smoke  do  its  work  before  the  cruel  flame 
touched  her  ?  Why  did  I  not  die  with  her, 
or  at  least  remain  in  blessed  unconscious- 
ness till  all  was  over?'  Oh,  Tom  !  how  can 
I  tell  you  of  that  awful  waking,  to  find  the. 
fairest  flower  in  God's  bright  world  so  blast- 
ed, so  disfigured,  a  thing  that  we  who  loved 
her  could  scarcely  recognize  as  our  sweet 


THE  MASTER'S  STORY.  101 

darling,  could  do  nothing  for  but  watch 
silently  her  agony,  and  pray  that  it  might 
soon  be  past?  " 

There  was  a  long  silence,  broken  only  by 
a  strange  quivering  breath,  as  of  some  one 
in  great  pain.  Torn  Bruce  sat  with  his  face 
buried  in  his  hands,  his  frame  shaken  with 
great  sobs. 

"  I  need  not  say  much  more,"  went  on 
Mr.  Moss  at  last ;  "  I  had  a  long  and  dan- 
gerous illness  after  that,  and  it  left  me  what 
I  am  now.  The  fall  injured  my  spine  in  some 
way,  changing'  a  tall,  promising  boy,  into 
a  stunted  cripple  ;  and,  what  was  worse,  the 
shock  bade  fair  for  a  time  to  deprive  me  of 
my  reason.  Thank  God,  that  is  a  long  while 
ago,  and  my  health  and  strength  have  been 
wonderfully  given  back  to  me ;  yet  even 


102       BIG  BETJCE   AND   LITTLE  MOSS. 

now  the  memory  of  that  night  comes  back 
to  me,  bringing  with  it  such  pain  that  God 
only  can  understand.  I  pray  him  to  keep  it 
from  me.  The  very  sudden  sight  or  smell 
of  fire  fills  me  even  now  with  a  horror  I  can- 
not describe,  and  I  believe  it  will  be  so  all 
my  life  through." 

So  the  story  was  told,  and  Tom  Bruce  at 
last  understood  the  whole  bitter  truth. 
How  great  the  suffering  that  had  been  in- 
flicted by  himself  and  his  thoughtless  com- 
panions !  How  great  the  patient  courage  of 
the  master  he  had  called  a  coward  !  How 
unselfish  the  act  that  had  saved  his  sister's 
life! 

"  Oh,  sir,  how  could  you  have  done  it ! 
How  could  we  have  done  it !  Can  you  evei 
forgive  me  ?  " 


THE  MASTEK'S  STOKY.  103 

"  Don't  grieve  over  it  so,  my  boy  !  "  and 
the  master's  kind  hand  was  laid  on  Tom's 
shoulder.  "  I  know  what  you  are  thinking 
of,  but  you  must  not  reproach  yourself  too 
much.  After  all,  you  were  ignorant  of  all 
this,  or  you  would  never  have  done  it.  Let 
us  thank  the  good  God  for  saving  your  dar- 
ling from  death,  as  I  thank  him  for  taking 
mine  out  of  reach  of  sorrow  and  sin.  He 
gives  and  he  takes  away;  blessed  be  his 
name  which  ever  it  is  !  And  now  give  me 
your  hand,  my  boy,  and  let  us  leave  these 
sad  thoughts  behind  us  once  and  for  all,  and 
start  fresh  from  to-day." 

Tom  squeezed  the  master's  hand  silently ; 
but  his  silence  spoke  more  than  words  could 
do  of  the  strong  love  and  reverence  that 
the  fire  had  kindled,  and  that  was  never  to 
be  extinguished. 


CHAPTER    XT. 

CONCLUSION. 

HAVE  little  more  to  say  of  Big 
Bruce  and  little  Moss  ;  but  you 
must  not  think  that,  because  nothing  is  said 
of  their  after  lives  that  nothing  was  done. 
That  is  a  mistake  we  are  all  of  us  apt  to 
make,  boys  and  all ;  for  surely  most  work  is 
done  when  the  school  is  quiet,  is  it  not  so  ? 
And  I  think  it  is  the  same  in  our  lives. 

Burnside  school  was  a  very  different  place 

now.     If  "  Old  Silver"  had  been  a  favorite, 

"  Little  Moss"  had  beaten  him  entirely,  and 

there  was  not    a   boy  in   the    school   who 

(104) 


CONCLUSION.  105 

would  not  have  done  any  thing  in  the  world 
for  his  mastei .  And,  as  in  the  bad  spirit 
before,  so  now  in  the  good  spirit,  Big  Bruce 
still  remained  head  and  leader  as  long  as 
he  was  at  school.  It  may  have  been  partly 
the  old  force  of  example  that  made  the  little 
boys  follow  the  big  ones  ;  it  may  have  been 
the  fireworks ;  it  may  have  been  the  fire 
that  had  wrought  the  change  ;  but  more 
than  all,  I  think  it  was  the  true  master's 
heart,  the  strong,  patient  will,  that  from 
the  very  first  had  gradually  been  winning 
the  boys'  hearts  long  before  they  knew  it. 

Tom  Bruce  left  school  at  Christmas,  and 
his  going  was  regretted  by  all,  but  by  none 
perhaps  so  keenly  as  by  himself.  "I'd 
have  begun  at  the  bottom  again  gladly," 


106       BIG  BKTJCE  AND  LITTLE  MOSS. 

he  said,  "  if  it  were  only  to  show  that  I 
could  do  differently." 

But  his  father  was  as  anxious  now  for 
him  to  leave  as  he  himself  had  been  two 
months  back.  "  You  can't  be  at  school  for- 
ever," he  said,  "and  it's  tune  you  were 
doing  something  for  yourself  now.  I  was  at 
work  before  I  was  your  age ;  and,  what's 
more,  you've  a  chance  now  of  a  'good  place 
and  it  would  be  wrong  to  miss  it." 

So  the  new  year  found  Tom  hard  at  work 
in  a  large  shop  at  Brickington,  while  Bob 
Clarke  was  head  of  the  school.  It  was  a 
good  place  under  a  kind  master,  and  gave 
promise  of  speedy  promotion  to  a  position 
any  village  boy  might  have  envied.  Tom 
did  his  duty  manfully  and  was  happy  and 
hopeful  in  his  work ;  but  he  often  looked 


CONCLUSION.  107 

back  wistfully  on  the  old  school-days,  and 
wished  they  were  to  come  over  again. 

He  liked  his  business ;  but,  nevertheless, 
the  happiest  days  of  his  life  were  those 
when  he  got  leave  to  come  home  and  take 
up  his  old  place  by  Bessy's  side,  where  they 
were  often  joined  by  the  friend  to  whom 
they  said  they  owed  more  than  to  any 

one  in  the  world. 

****** 

And  here,  I  think,  we  will  say  good-by 
to  Big  Bruce  and  Little  Moss.  And  you 
and  I  boys  must  say  good-by  to  each  other 
till  another  day,  when  maybe  we  shall  have 
another  pleasant  hour  together.  But,  before 
I  go,  I  have  a  word  for  you  to  carry  away. 

Be  brave,  boys,  and  love  and  admire  brave 
and  great  men,  but  don't  go  by  outsides. 


108        BIG   BRUCE   AND   LITTLE   MOSS. 

Remember  the  king  of  old,  of  whom  we 
read  that  "  there  was  not  among  the  children 
of  Israel  a  goodlier  person  than  he  ;  from  his 
shoulders  and  upward  he  was  higher  than 
any  of  the  people,"  and  yet  his  boasted 
strength  failed,  and  he  died  a  coward's 
death  ;  and  then  think  of  his  greater  name- 
sake, of  whom  they  said,  "his  bodily  pres- 
ence is  weak,  and  his  speech  contemptible," 
and  he  lived  a  glorious  brave  life,  and  died 
a  martyr's  death.  And  oh,  boys  !  never 
forget  your  own  true  Master,  who  "  was 
despised,"  and  "we  esteemed  him  not," 
and  who  is  indeed  and  in  truth  the  King 
of  heroes. 


WHERE  WE  FOUND  THE  LACE.    Page  109. 


II. 


WHERE  WE  FOUND  THE  LACE. 


mischief  like  other  little  boys  of 
the  present  day ;  but  still  I  could  not  un- 
derstand why  every  thing  that  went  wrong 
about  the  place  should  be  laid  to  the  charge 
of  my  brothers  or  myself.  Of  course,  six 
boys  will  give  trouble,  and  will  have  acci- 
dents at  times ;  and  if  we  broke  a  dish  car- 
rying a  dog  its  dinner,  or  lamed  the  pony  by 
riding  it  carelessly,  I  think  we  generally 
made  what  is  called  "  a  clean  breast  of  it,' ' 
and  either  blurted  it  out  to  father  when  he 
(  100  ) 


110      "WHERE   WE  FOUND   TELE  LACE. 

appeared  in  the  stable-yard,  or  confessed  it 
to  mother  when  we  visited  her  dressing- 
room  at  dusk. 

So  it  did  seem  rather  hard  that  once  when 
our  grandmother  was  on  a  visit  at  Bishop- 
mead  (our  house),  her  maid  should  come  an- 
grily up  to  us  and  accuse  Master  Frederick 
(poor  me  ! )  specially,  of  taking  away  and 
hiding,  to  plague  her,  some  of  my  grand- 
mother's very  best  point  lace. 

I  was  in  the  paddock,  she  said,  when  she 
laid  the  lace  on  the  ground  to  dry,  and  she 
had  but  turned  her  back  for  five  minutes, 
just  to  fetch  some  fine  linen  to  bleach,  when 
the  lace  had  vanished,  and  I  must  have  tak- 
en it. 

I  vowed  I  had  never  even  seen  the  nasty 
rubbish.  We  boys  didn't  at  all  like  Mrs. 


WHERE   WE   FOUND   THE   LACE.     Ill 

Barbara,  and  I  wanted  to  make  her  angry 
by  speaking  rudely  of  the  beautiful  lace  she 
prized  so  much. 

Not  very  civil  of  me,  but  boys  are  not 
perfect,  we  all  know ;  and  Mrs.  Barbara 
often  provoked  us  with  her  sharp  tongue. 
The  matter  was  serious,  however  ;  the  lace 
was  gone,  and  it  was  valuable. 

I  was  examined  by  a  court  consisting  of 
mother,  grandmother,  and  two  aunts,  and 
pronounced  Not  Guilty.  But  where  could 
the  lace  be  ?  Had  the  wind  blown  it  away  ? 
No,  there  was  not  a  breath  of  air  stirring. 
Could  a  tramp  have  stolen  it  ?  No  :  the 
paddock  was  well  guarded  by  Bang,  a  big 
watch-dog,  who  would  certainly  have  re- 
ported very  loudly  the  arrival  of  any  stran- 
ger in  his  domain. 


112      "WHERE   WE  FOUND   THE  LACE. 

It  was  very  unsatisfactory,  Barbara  would 
mutter ;  she  was  sure  Master  Frederick 
must  have  taken  it ;  but  as  other  people  did 
not  think  so,  I  did  not  care. 

Grandmother  paid  a  long  visit  this  time  ; 
it  must  have  been  nearly  a  month  later,  and 
she  was  still  with  us  when  my  brother  Frank 
and  I  proposed  climbing  a  high  tree  near 
the  house  to  search  a  bird's  nest  we  saw 
there. 

He  said  it  was  a  thrush's  nest,  I  said  it 
was  a  sedge-cock's.  It  was  a  very  high 
tree,  and  not  easy  to  climb.  I  heard  the 
maids  screaming  at  me  from  the  bed-room 
window  as  I  mounted  higher  and  higher; 
of  course,  as  all  bo$Ts  know,  this  rather 
pleased  me,  and  made  me  scramble  up  high- 
er still. 


WHERE   WE   FOUND   THE  LACE.      113 

Frank  I  had  left  far  behind.  I  got  to  the 
nest  at  last  and  peeped  in ;  it  was  empty, 
the  birds  had  flown.  I  was  just  leaving  it, 
when  something  odd  in  its  lining  attracted 
me.  There  was  no  harm  in  taking  it  from 
its  place  now  to  show  Frank,  so  I  wrenched 
it  from  its  place  and  carefully  slipped  down 
with  it. 

"  What  is  it,  Frank  ?  "  I  said. 

He  only  shook  his  head  wisely. 

We  carried  it  indoors,  straight  to  grand- 
mother. She  knew  what  it  was  in  a  min- 
ute ;  her  beautiful  lace,  quilted  most  care- 
fully into  the  side  of  the  nest  to  make  a  soft 
home  for  the  young  birds. 

It  was  so  cleverly  done,  that  even  grand- 
mother could  not  but  admire  it. 

Barbara,  it  is  true,  said,  "  Nasty,  mischiev- 


114      WHEKE   WE   FOUND   THE  LACE. 

cms  things  I  "  when  she  saw  it ;  but  no  one 
else  was  vexed  with  the  curious,  busy  little 
mother  who  had  so  ingeniously  worked  up 
the  soft  lace  which  she  had  picked  up  in  the 
paddock.  And  my  character  was  cleared. 


III. 

THE  LOST  LETTER. 

ID  you  post  my  letter  this  morning 
Reginald  ?  " 
u"Oh  yes,  father,  I  did,  not  forget  it." 
"  Was  it  in  time  ?" 
"  Yes,  quite." 

There  was  something  in  Reginald's  manner 
which  led  his  father  to  say,  "  Are  you  sure  ?  " 
After    a  little  inward    struggle   the  boy 
answered,  boldly,  "  Yes,  father." 

"Well,   that's  enough,  Reginald  ;  I  only 
asked  so  particularly,  because  that  letter  is 
of  much  importance,  and  if  you  had  mislaid 
(115) 


116  THE  LOST  LETTER. 

or  forgotten  it,  I  should  have  had  time  to 
write  another  by  the  evening  post." 

"  Yes,  father,  it's  all  right,"  repeated  Regi- 
nald, as  he  left  the  room ;  and  yet  he  did  not 
feel  entirely  comfortable  concerning  this 
same  letter,  although  he  hoped,  and  tried 
to  believe,  that  he  had  spoken  the  truth  in 
saying  it  had  been  posted  that  morning. 
The  fact  was,  he  had  been  guilty  of-  the 
fault  of  committing  to  the  care  of  another 
that  with  which  he  had  been  himself  intrust- 
ed, and  the  way  it  occurred  was  this ;  it 
was  a  school  holiday,  and  Reginald  had 
previously  arranged  with  some  of  his  com- 
panions to  go  a  long  way  into  the  country 
to  fish,  when,  just  as  he  was  leaving  home 
for  the  purpoise  of  meeting  them  at  the  ap- 
pointed place,  his  father  called  out, 


THE   LOST   LETTER.  117 

"  Where  are  you  going,  Reginald  ?  " 

"  With  the  boys  to  the  river,  father,"  he 
replied. 

"  Well,  take  this  letter  to  the  post  first, 
and  mind  to  have  it  in  time  ;  I  have  no  one 
else  I  can  send." 

"  Yes,  father,"  replied  Reginald,  in  no  very 
willing  tone,  for  he  considered  it  a  hard 
case  to  be  sent  so  far  out  of  his  way.  How- 
ever, not  being  in  the  habit  of  disputing 
his  father's  words,  he  left  the  house  with 
the  letter  in  his  hand,  at  the  same  time 
muttering  to  himself,  "  Rather  too  bad  to  be- 
made  a  post-boy  of  on  a  holiday." 

The  fishing-party  were  all  assembled  at 
the  appointed  place. 

"  Why,  Reggie,  how  late  you  are  !  "  ex- 
claimed one  of  them ;  "  we've  been  waiting 


118  THE   LOST   LETTER. 

for  you  this  long  time  ;  but  never  mind, 
come  along  now." 

"  I  can't  go  with  you,  boys,"  answered 
Reginald,  in  a  melancholy  tone :  "  don't  wait 
any  longer,  I'll  follow  you  after  awhile." 

"  Why,  what's  stopping  you?  "  asked  the 
former  speaker.  "  If  you  can  come  soon,  I'll 
wait" 

"  No,  no  Dick ;  I  have  to  go  to  the  town 
to  post  a  letter  for  my  father,  and  I  wouldn't 
like  to  keep  you  so  long ;  I'll  meet  you  at 
the  river."  So  saying,  he  turned  slowly  and 
unwillingly  in  the  opposite  direction. 

"  Stop,  stop,  Reggie !  "  shouted  one  of  the 
boys;  "give  the  letter  to  Ned, he'll  pass  the 
post-office  on  his  way  home,  for  he's  not 
coming  with  us." 


THE   LOST  LETTER.  119 

"  Father  said  the  letter  was  very  particu- 
lar," replied  Reginald,  hesitating. 

"  Well,"  answered  Ned,  indignantly,  "  do 
you  think  I  never  posted  a  particular  let- 
ter ?  Why,  I  suppose  my  father's  letters  are 
of  as  much  consequence  as  yours,  and  he 
always  trusts  them  to  me.  I  only  wish  I 
had  the  chance  to  go  along  with  you,  and 
you'd  see  how  few  objections  I'd  make." 

Reginald  was  easily  tempted  to  comply 
with  their  wish,  and  set  off  with  his  com- 
panions, persuading  himself  that  he  had  sent 
his  father's  letter  to  the  post,  and  thus  done 
all  that  was  required. 

The  weather  was  favorable,  the  fishing 
successful,  and  Reginald  returned  home,  af- 
ter having  passed  a  pleasant  day ;  and  it 
was  not  until  questioned  by  his  father  that 


120  THE   LOST   LETTER. 

his  thoughts  reverted  to  the  subject  of  the 
letter  ;  then,  indeed,,  he  felt  a  little  anxious 
during  the  remainder  of  the  evening.  "  How 
absurd,"  he  argued  with  himself,  "  to  fret 
about  it,  when  I'm  sure  it's  all  right ;  still  I 
wish  I  had  acknowledged  to  my  father  that 
I  gave  it  to  Ned  to  post.  It's  too  late  to  tell 
him  now,  however,  and  I'll  set  my  mind  at 
ease  to-morrow  by  asking  Ned  if  it's  all 
right  I  " 

Accordingly  at  school  next  day  'Reginald 
questioned  his  friend  concerning  the  letter. 

"  Are  you  quite  sure  you  posted  it  ?  "  he 
said,  "  for  my  father  has  been  asking  me." 

"And  I  suppose  you  declared  that  you 
put  it  in  with  your  own  hand?  " 

"  No,  Ned,"  replied  Reginald.  "  I  did  not 
Bay  so,  and  it's  a  shame  for  you  to  accuse 


THE   LOST   LETTER.  121 

me  of  an  untruth  ;  "  and  as  he  spoke  his  face 
became  crimson,  for  conscience  told  him 
that,  although  he  had  not  spoken  these 
words,  yet  he  had  equally  deceived  his  father. 

"  I  don't  see  why  you  should  be  so  angry, 
and  take  a  fellow  up  so  sharp  about  it,"  said 
Ned,  "  and  to  punish  you,  I  won't  tell  what 
became  of  the  precious  letter,  so  you  may 
go  fish  for  all  the  information  you'll  get  out 
of  me." 

Reginald  walked  off,  too  proud  to  ask  any 
further  questions,  and  feeling  more  and 
more  uneasy. 

The  truth  was  that  Ned  was  glad  of  any 
excuse  for  not  confessing  that  he,  like  Reg- 
inald himself,  had  resigned  his  charge  to 
another. 

Shortly  after  the  fishing-party  had  start- 
ed, as  he  was  on  his  way  to  the  town,  he  met 


122  THE  LOST  LETTER. 

a  group  of  boys  and  girls  just  assembled  for 
the  purpose  of  going  on  a  blackberrying  ex- 
pedition, who  asked  him  to  join  in  the 
amusement. 

"  I  should  like  it  very  much,"  he  replied, 
"  but  for  this  letter ;  I  wish  I  had  never  un- 
dertaken it." 

"  Where  are  you  going  with  it  ?  " 

"  To  the  post." 

"  Oh !  if  that's  all,"  said  one  of  the  boys, 
"  give  it  to  me,  and  I'll  have  it  sent." 

"  Are  you  sure  it  will  be  safe  ?  "  asked 
Ned. 

"Yes,  of  course  I  am,"  replied  the  boy, 
and  seizing  the  letter,  he  ran  toward  the 
public  road.  Looking  up  and  down  he  soon 
spied  a  ragged  child  going  in  the  direction 
of  the  town. 

"  Come  here !  "  he  cried. 


THE   LOST  LETTER.  123 

The  little  fellow  approached. 

"  Where  are  you  going  ?  " 

"  I  don't  know,  sir." 

"  Well,  perhaps  you  know  the  way  to 
town,  and  where  the  post-office  is  ?" 

"  Yes,  sir." 

"  Then  take  this  letter,  and  be  sure  you 
put  it  in  safely  ;  stay,  here's  a  penny  for 
your  trouble." 

"  Thank  you,  sir,"  said  the  boy,  as  he  ran 
off  with  the  letter  and  penny. 

"  Now  I've  done  all  I  could  for  you,  Ned," 
said  his  friend ;  "  I've  sent  your  letter  to  the 
post,  and  paid  a  fellow  for  taking  it,  so  make 
your  mind  easy,  and  let  us  enjoy  ourselves.' 

Accordingly  the  party  set  off,  and  spent 
a  very  happy  day ;  they  clambered  through 
hedges  and  briery  brakes,  in  order  to  reach 


124  THE   LOST   LETTEK. 

the  rich  clusters  of  ripe  fruit,  laughing  and 
talking  gayly  all  the  time.  Ned  thoroughly 
enjoyed  himself,  without  bestowing  another 
thought  on  the  letter,  of  which  he  had  un- 
dertaken the  charge. 

Meantime  the  little  boy  to  whom  it  had 
last  been  intrusted,  still  holding  it  in  his 
hand,  ran  quickly  to  town,  but  so  impatient 
was  he  to  spend  the  penny  which  he  had 
been  given,  that  before  going  to  the  post- 
office,  he  turned  into  a  tempting  cake-shop, 
and  purchased  a  nice  bun.  It  was  not  until 
it  was  eaten  that  he  recollected  the  letter, 
which  was  then  nowhere  to  be  found. 
Supposing  it  must  have  fallen  from  his  hand 
at  the  shop-door  where  he  had  bought  the 
bun,  he  went  back  to  search  ;  but  it  was 
hopelessly  gone,  and  not  feeling  very  anx- 


THE   LOST   LETTER.  125 

ious  concerning  its  fate,  he  returned  home, 
and  thought  no  more  on  the  subject*.  But 
the  changes  and  chances  of  the  unfortunate 
letter  were  nearly  at  a  close,  for  a  little 
beggar-girl  happening  to  pass  at  the  mo- 
ment, saw  it  fall  to  the  ground,  and  cun- 
ningly waiting  till  the  boy  had  turned 
away,  she  picked  it  up  quickly,  and  ran  off 
to  her  mother,  who  greeted  her  with  a  blow. 

"  Is  that  all  you've  brought,  child,  after 
being  out  so  long  ?  What's  the  good  of  a  let- 
ter to  us  ?  only  for  the  stamp,  certainly  it's 
worth  a  penny." 

"  Is  it,  mother  ?  I'll  take  it  off,  then.  But 
what's  to  be  done  with  the  rest?  " 

"  It  might  get  us  into  trouble,"  replied  the 
woman,  "  so  we.'d  better  destroy  it ;  but 
show  me  first,  for  there  might  be  something 


126  THE  LOST  LETTER. 

inside."  Finding  there  was  no  inclosure 
she  tossed  it  into  the  fire,  and  so  Mr.  Wes- 
ton's  important  letter  was  consigned  to  the 
flames. 

Days  passed  on,  during  which  Mr.  TVes- 
ton  vainly  expected  an  answer,  but  every 
post  only  brought  fresh  disappointment. 
His  face  began  to  assume  an  anxious  and 
care-worn  expression,  his  manner  became 
quick  and  impatient,  and  it  was  evident  his 
mind  was  ill  at  ease.  In  vain  did  Mrs. 
Weston  try  to  discover  the  cause  of  his 
anxiety;  the  reply  which  she  always  re- 
ceived was,  "  Don't  fret,  dear,  it  will  be  all 
right  to-morrow,  when  I  hear  from  Ed- 
wards." But  many  to-morrows  came  with- 
out bringing  the  expected  letter,  and  he 
grew  more  and  more  unhappy.  One  day 


THE   LOST  LETTEE.  127 

Reginald  heard  him  reply  to  his  wife's  oft- 
repeated  inquiries,  "  It  is  entirely  a  business 

• 

difficulty,  and  it  is  the  delay  which  makes 
me  uneasy ;  if  I  had  heard  from  Edwards  a 
day  or  two  ago  it  would  have  been  all  right." 
"  How  is  that?  "  she  asked. 
"  He  has  a  large  sum  of  money  of  mine, 
which  he  is  ready  to  pay  at  a  moment's  no- 
tice, and  there  was  an  arrangement  between 
us  that  I  should  demand  it  whenever  requir- 
ed.    I  have  done  so,  and  received  no  an- 
swer.    This  money,  could  I  have  obtained 
it  in  time,  would  have  tided  me  over  all  my 
difficulties ;  but  I  fear  it  will  be  too  late  af- 
ter to-morrow,  and  I  shall  have  lost  credit." 
"  Have  you  written  again  ?  " 
"  Yes,  twice,  but  without  success." 
It  may  well  be  imagined  what  Reginald's 


128  THE   LOST   LETTEE. 

feelings  were  during  the  conversation,  and 
how  earnestly  he  wished  that  he  had  obey- 
ed his  father's  directions  and  posted  the  lost 
letter  himself,  but  regrets  were  now  too  late. 

He  passed  a  miserable  night,  and  setting 
off  early  the  next  morning  to  the  post,  re- 
turned in  high  spirits,  carrying  a  letter  di- 
rected to  his  father  in  the  well-known  hand- 
writing of  Mr.  Edwards.  "  I  have  given  my- 
self this  fright  about  nothing,"  he  thought, 
"  for  of  course  Ned  posted  it  all  right ;  but  I 
wonder  why  this  letter  has  so  many  foreign 
marks  on  the  cover."  So  thinking,  he  reach- 
ed the  breakfast-room,  and  presented  it  to  his 
father,  whose  face  lighted  up  with  hope. 
"  At  last,"  he  murmured  ;  "  it  is  just  in  time, 
but  at  the  very  latest  moment." 

Reginald's     mother     and     sisters    gazed 


THE   LOST  LETTEK.  129 

inquiringly  at  Mr.  Weston  as  he  read,  and 
a  weight  of  anxiety  was  lifted  from  their 
hearts ;  but  their  joy  was  indeed  short-lived, 
for  while  they  looked  a  gradual  change  over- 
spread his  countenance  as  he  deliberately 
folded  up  the  paper,  and  returned  it  to  its 
cover.  After  a  few  moments  of  painful  sus- 
pense he  spoke  : 

"  It  is  of  no  use ;  we  are  ruined.  Ed- 
wards has  gone  abroad  without  having  re- 
ceived any  of  my  letters ;  he  merely  writes 
to  let  me  know  his  present  address,  in  case 
I  should  wish  to  apply  for  the  money ;  but 
it  is  too  late.  We  must  make  up  our  minds 
for  the  worst." 

"  Could  you  not  write  at  once  to  his  new 
address  ?  "  asked  Mrs.  Weston. 

"No  use,"   he   replied;    "the  rush  will 


130  THE   LOST  LETTEK. 

come  immediately,  and  I  must  acknowledge 
that  I  am  unable  to  meet  it."  Then  after  a 
pause,  he  added,  "  But  why  did  he  not  re- 
ceive my  first  letter  ?  it  must  have  been  writ- 
ten several  days  before  he  started.  Let  me 
see,"  taking  out  the  letter  again  —  "  yes,  I 
wrote  on  the  4th,  and  he  did  not  leave  till 
the  9th.  Had  he  received  that  letter  all 
would  have  been  right.  Reginald,  I  now 
remember  I  gave  it  to  you  to  post." 

It  was  too  much  for  the  poor  boy.  He 
had  listened  thus  far  in  a  state  of  mind  im- 
possible to  describe  ;  and  novr,  bursting  in- 
to tears,  he  confessed  that  he  had  intrusted 
the  letter  to  one  of  his  school-fellows,  in 
order  that  he  might  have  an  additional  half- 
hour's  fishing ;  therefore  he  could  not  be 
sure  that  it  had  been  posted  at  all.  Alas  ! 


THE   LOST   LETTER.  131 

that  half-hour's  fishing  was  dearly  bought, 
at  the  expense  of  many  years  of  toil  and 
poverty,  besides  the  bitter  self-reproach 
which  lasted  during  his  entire  life.  It  was, 
indeed,  sad  to  see  his  parents  in  their  latter 
days  reduced  to  poverty,  and  obliged  to  en- 
dure sufferings  and  hardships  to  which  they 
had  never  been  accustomed ;  and  his  sisters 
deprived,  not  only  of  luxuries  and  comforts, 
but  also  of  the  advantages  of  education ; 
and  all  through  his  one  act  of  disobedience. 
The  whole  family  were  obliged  to  remove 
to  a  foreign  land,  where,  although  Reginald 
worked  hard,  and  strove  in  every  way  to  re- 
pair the  mischief  he  had  caused,  yet  they 
never  recovered  entirely  their  wealth  or  po- 
sition. Thus  we  see  what  serious  conse- 
quences the  slightest  deviation  from  the  path 
of  duty  may  produce. 


IV. 
A  VERY  KNOWING  BIRD. 

SUPPOSE  every  one  has  some 
story  to  tell  of  some  parrot  that 
he  has  either  known  or  heard  of ;  but  gen- 
erally these  stories  consist  of  some  few  dis- 
jointed sentences  that  Poll  was  in  the  habit 
of  uttering,  some  of  which  happened  to  be 
very  appropriate  on  particular  occasions. 

For  many  years  I  was  acquainted  with  a 
parrot,  which  was  not  only  a  first-rate  talk- 
er, but  displayed  such  intelligence  in  her  re- 
marks, that  I  must  pronounce  her,  on  the 
whole,  the  most  wonderful  bird  I  ever  heard 
(132) 


A  VERY  KNOWING  LIKD.     Page    132. 


A   VERY   KNOWING    BIKD.  133 

of.  To  make,  however,  her  intelligence 
plain,  and  to  show  you  the  appropriateness 
of  her  remarks,  I  must  inform  you  of  her 
history,  and  of  some  particulars  of  her 
owner. 

Polly  was  born  on  the  coast  of  Africa,  in 
the  year  1845,  and  soon  after  she  was  fledged 
she  came  into  the  possession  of  my  'friend, 
who  was  a  surgeon  in  the  navy,  and  an  M. 
D.  The  doctor,  who  was  a  kind-hearted 
man,  and  fond  of  most  animals,  soon  made  a 
great  pet  of  the  bird,  and  was  more  gentle 
with  her  from  the  fact  of  her  having  so  soon 
been  taken  from  her  mother.  On  board 
ship  during  cold  or  stormy  weather  she 
would  be  on  his  arm,  and  at  night  had  her 
place  in  his  bosom.  Being  fond  of  music, 
and  having  a  particularly  musical  whistle,  he 


134  A  VERY   KNOWING  BIKD. 

used  very  frequently  to  give  the  bird  les- 
sons in  the  art,  until  she  soon  began  to  pick 
up  the  notes  of  some  Scotch  tunes,  to  which 
her  owner  was  very  partial.  Amongst  the 
first  tunes  acquired  by  Poll,  was  "  Blue  Bon- 
nets over  the  Border,"  which  she  turned  to 
good  account  on  one  occasion.  It  was  on 
the  way  home  from  the  Coast,  arid  the  bird 
was,  for  some  reason,  put  into  a  cage  with 
another  parrot  belonging  to  the  ship's  car- 
penter, and  both  were  placed  in  a  dark  hole. 
The  carpenter's  bird  soon  asserted  her  su- 
periority, and  seemed  determined  to  keep 
the  upper  perch  to  herself,  for  on  every  at- 
tempt which  our  friend  made  to  rise  in  the 
world  she  was  bitten,  and  forced  down  to 
her  more  lowly  position.  This  continued 
throughout  the  voyage,  until  the  ship  arriv- 


A  VERY   KNOWING   BIRD.  135 

ed  at  Slieerness,  when  the  cage  was  transfer- 
red to  a  river  steamer,  as  both  the  owners  in- 
tended proceeding  to  London  at  once.  The 
cage  was  placed  on  the  deck,  and  both  the 
birds  seemed  pleased  to  enjoy  the  bustle  and 
light.  On  board  the  steamer  was  one  of 
those  small  bands  of  musicians  which  per- 
form for  the  sake  of  what  they  can  collect. 
One  of  their  pieces  was  "  Blue  Bonnets  over 

the  Border,1'  which,  as  soon  as  our  Polly 

-*«. 

heard  it,  greatly  ruffled  her  peaceful  and 
subdued  breast.  She  became  very  excited, 
flapped  her  wings,,  and  manifested  great  de- 
•Ught ;  but  the  music  inspired  her  with  other 
feelings  than  those  of  joy,  for  it  nerved  her 
to  dispute  the  possession  of  the  top  perch 
with  her  old  foe,  who  had  proved  too  much 
for  her.  Her  time  had  now  come,  for  she 


136  A  VERY   KNOWING   BIED. 

got  upon  the  perch  and  administered  such  a 
thrashing  with  beak  and  foot  on  her  rival, 
that  she  was  driven  to  the  bottom  of  the 
cage,  and  there  remained  for  the  rest  of  the 
voyage.  As  soon  as  Poll  was  firmly  estab- 
lished on  the  perch  that  was  now  hers,  she 
whistled  her  hymn  of  victory  by  accompany- 
ing the  band  in  "  Blue  Bonnets  over  the 
Border." 

Like  others  of  her  species;  Polly's  pow- 
ers of  imitation  were  very  amusing ;  the 
"  -noise  of  animals  and  the  street  cries  were 
very  well  rendered.  This  mimicry  was  not 
always  amusing,  for  she  would  frequently 
disappoint  the  cat,  by  calling  her  in  the  voice 
of  her  mistress.  Once,  when  somewhat 
hidden,  she  indulged  in  this  pastime,  and 
called  the  cat  so  repeatedly,  and  then  indul- 


A  VEEY  KNOWING   BIRD.  137 

ged  in  such  loud  laughter,  that  the  poor  an- 
imal was  actually  driven  to  distraction,  and 
went  mad. 

But  Polly's  imitations  of  the  voices  of 
her  friends  were  the  most  amusing  She 
would  whistle,  and  talk,  and  laugh,  and 
sneeze,  and  produce  the  sound  of  blowing 
her  nose,  exactly  like  the  doctor  ;  and  would 
even  carry  on  a  conversation  with  her  mas- 
ter. Nay,  more';  she  and  the  doctor  would 
whistle  a  tune  between  them,  which  would 
have  its  beginning  somewhat  in  this  form. 

Polly.     "  Now  then,  doctor." 

Tho  doctor  would  then  whistle  half  a  bar 
and  then  leave  off.  Polly  would  then  take 
up  the  music  at  the  note  where  the  doctor 
had  left  off,  and  continue  it  for  a  few  notes, 
when  she  would  leave  off,  saying,  "  Go  on, 


138  A  VERY   KNOWING   BIRD. 

doctor."  Perhaps  he  would  say,  "  I  shan't ; " 
when  Polly  would  reply,  "  Oh !  won't  you, 
Doctor  ?  "  "  No,  I  won't ;  go  on  yourself," 
the  doctor  would  remark ;  and  then  Polly 
would  take  up  the  tune,  whistle  it  to  the 
end ;  then,  in  a  half  chiding  way,  would 
say,  "  Oh,  Oh,  doctor  !  "  and  as  if  to  show 
she  enjoyed  the  joke  would  add,  "  Come  and 
kiss  me,  you  rascal."  The  doctor  and  the 
bird  would  then  blow  a  kiss  to  each  other, 
and  both  would  indulge  in  a  hearty  laugh. 
Polly's  presence  was  once  rather  embar- 
rassing. A  lady  friend  of  the  family  had 
called  soon  after  the  sudden  death  of  her 
sister,  when  the  conversation  naturally  turn- 
ed on  her  recent  loss.  Polly  was  under  the 
dress  of  one  member  of  the  household,  and 
her  presence  was  not  suspected.  Presently 


A  VERY   KNOWING  BIRD.  139 

the  sorrowing  lady  was  startled  on  hearing 
a  voice  (when  she  had  broken  off  her  narra- 
tive to  indulge  her  grief)  remark,  very  un- 
feelingly, "  Hurrah  !  go  on  then." 

It  will  thus  be  seen  that  Polly  was  allow- 
ed pretty  much  her  liberty.  She  went 
where  she  liked,  and  she  was  so  tame  and 
gentle,  that  one  of  the  ladies  used  to  carry 
her  about  011  her  head.  She  was  not  alto- 
gether free  from  mischief,  for  she  would  un- 
wind reels  of  silk  and  cotton,  and  bite  holes 
in  the  carpet.  But  before  doing  any  thing 
which  she  knew  was  forbidden,  she  would 
throw  you  off  your  guard  by  calling  out, 

"  Would  you,  you  dare  ?  naughty  Polly !  " 
and  after  you  had  looked  once  or  twice, 
and  had  only  seen  her  holding  her  demure 


140  A  VERY  KNOWING   BIRD. 

head  on  one  side,  she  would  think  the  coast 
was  clear,  and  begin  her  tricks. 

Polly  cherished  many  of  her  naval  asso- 
ciations, and  would  often  revive  them,  much 
to  the  amusement  of  visitors.  She  would 
pipe  the  boatswain's  whistle  most  cleverly, 
and  then  give  various  orders,  such  as  are 
heard  on  board  ship.  The  ,  officers'  meals 
are  announced  by  roll  of  drum,  so  when 
Polly  saw  the  preparations  for  meals  were 
nearly  completed,  she  would  say,  "  Call 
the  drummer,  you  Rowly  "  (this  was  the 
name  of  the  marine  on  board  the  doctor's 
last  ship).  Then,  sfter  a  short  interval, 
she  would  play  the  tattoo,  "  Rum,  turn, 
titum." 

Polly  looked  forward  to  her  meals,  and 
would  give  very  plain  hints  if  they  were 


A  VEEY  KNOWING   BEBD.  141 

late.  "  Bring  the  dinner,"  she  would  say, 
adding  the  name  of  the  servant  for  the  time 
being ;  but  when-  tea-time  drew  near,  she 
would  merely  say,  "  Grog  O  !  "  She  never 
confused  the  meals,  and  called  for  grog  at 
dinner-time.  Her  trough  at  dinner  was 
filled  with  fish,  flesh,  and  fowl,  in  fact,  with 
any  thing  or  every  thing  that  her  master  had ; 
but  at  tea-time  she  had  merely  her  allowance 
of  tea,  which  she  called  grog  —  so  many 
spoonsful,  which  she  managed  very  cleverly 
to  take  from  a  spoon.  If  the  doctor  or  his 
family  happened  to  be  out  for  the  evening, 
Polly's  tea  was  made  on  purpose. 

Surprise  was  often  expressed  by  friends 
that  so  varied  a  diet  was  found  to  agree 
with  the  bird,  but  Polly  enjoyed  excellent 
health,  and  was  usually  in  good  spirits. 


142  A  VERY  KNOWING   BIED. 

It  may  be  imagined  that  Polly's  exuber- 
ance of  spirits  was  not  always  desirable  ; 
but  she  knew  when  her  .conversation  was 
not  wanted.  After  breakfast  it  was  the 
doctor's  custom  to  read  the  newspaper  aloud 
to  his  daughter,  when  Polly  always  had  to 
preserve  a  dignified  silence.  When  the 
news  was  unusually  full  or  interesting,  or 
Polly  was  unusually  impatient,  she  would 
at  length  break  out  with  "  Good-by,  doc- 
tor, good-by.  Come  and  kiss  me,  you  ras- 
cal," which  was  the  daily  good-by  before 
the  doctor  went  for  his  morning  walk,  which 
he  generally  did  as  soon  as  he  had  finished  the 
paper.  The  farewell  was  a  pretty  broad 
hint  that  it  was  time  for  her  master  to-be  off. 

Then  when  he  was  fairly  away  Polly's 
time  began,  and  until  his  return  she  would 


A  VERY  KNOWING   BIED.  143 

go  through  all  her  performances,  singing, 
•whistling,  talking,  laughing,  with  all  her 
might.  When  the  weather  was  fine  she 
would  be  placed  near  the  open  window, 
which  greatly  added  to  her  enjoyment  and 
to  the  amusement  of  passers-by. 

The  street  cries  were  given  with  a  voice 
that  costermongers  might  have  envied,  much 
to  the  delight  of  the  children  in"  the  street, 
who  would  collect  in  little  groups,  and  try 
to  imitate  her.  Sometimes  these  noisy 
and  irreverent  youngsters  would  seem  to 
offend  her,  when  she  would  exclaim,  in  tones 
of  severe  reproach,  "  Go  away ;  go  away." 

I  might  tell  you  more  stories,  but  I  think 
I  have  said  enough  to  justify  my  statement 
that  Polly  was  a  wonderful  bird.  In  De- 
cember, 1865,  we  noticed  that  Polly  was 


144  A  VERY  KNOWING  BIED. 

unwell,  and  grew  morose,  which  was  a  most 
unusual  trait  in  her  character.  She  bit  "  the 
boy,''  who  was  now  a  little  fellow  high 
enough  to  stand  by  her  cage  and  talk  to 
her;  and  this  circumstance  attracted  our 
attention.  Her  mistress  said  it  was  a  bad 
sign,  and  attributed  it  not  to  malice,  but  to 
approaching  death ;  and  she  was  not  wrong, 
for  a  week"  afterward  we  found  Polly  one 
morning  lying  dead  at  the  bottom  of  the 
cage. 

Poor  Polly !  We  missed  her  very  much, 
for  she  was  always  so  affectionate,  and 
cheerful,  and  interesting — a  brighter  charac- 
ter, perhaps,  than  could  be  given  to  all  of  us. 


This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last 
date  stamped  below 


ttC'D  LU-Ufil 

I    &    OCTl 

OCTI3  197S 


.s?s 


lOm-11,'50  (2555)470 

UNIVERSirrOF  CALIFORNIA 
f. OS  ANGELES 


000081994    6 


